Приве́т! Я уже́ не́сколько дней в Москве́́, но ещё не зна́ю, где покупа́ть проду́кты. Сего́дня я иду́ на ры́нок.

Hi! I’ve been in Moscow for a few days now, but I still don’t know where to buy groceries. Today I’m going to the market.

Посмо́трим, что там мо́жно купи́ть.

Let's see what we can buy there.

посмотре́ть (Infinitive, Perfective verb)
Future Tens:
я посмотрю́
ты посмо́тришь
он, она́ посмо́трит
мы посмо́трим
вы посмо́трите
они посмо́трят
Imperative: Посмо́три! Посмо́трите!

- Здра́вствуйте, ско́лько сто́ит карто́шка?

- Здра́вствуйте. Карто́шка 200 (две́сти) рубле́й за килогра́мм.

- Почему́ так до́рого?

- Hello, how much are the potatoes?
- Hello. The potatoes are 200 (two hundred) rubles per kilogram.
- Why are they so expensive?

сто́ить (Infinitive, Imperfective verb)
The most common forms of the verb "сто́ить" (to cost) are the third-person singular "сто́ит" and the third-person plural "сто́ят". For example: "The book costs 100 rubles" and "The books cost 200 rubles."

- Здра́вствуйте, ско́лько сто́ят ва́ши я́блоки?
- Яблоки 500 (пятьсо́т) рубле́й за килогра́мм.
- Очень до́рого!

- Hello, how much are your apples?
- The apples are 500 (five hundred) rubles per kilogram.
- That’s very expensive!

стоить (Infinitive)
In the previous dialogue, the noun "карто́шка" was in the singular, so Mark asked, "Ско́лько сто́ит карто́шка" (How much is the potato?). In this dialogue, the noun "я́блоки" is in the plural, so he asks, "Ско́лько сто́ят ва́ши я́блоки?"

- Приве́т, Ле́на. Это ты? Я сейча́с на ры́нке. Но здесь всё так до́рого!

- Hi, Lena. Is that you? I’m at the market right now. But everything here is so expensive!

The prepositional case is used to express the location of a person or an object. Mark says "на ры́нке" (at the market). To explain his location, he uses the preposition "на" (at) + a noun in the prepositional case. To do this, he adds the ending "-е" to the word "ры́нок": ры́нок - на ры́нке.
Note: In the word ры́нок (market), the letter "о" is a fleeting vowel. It drops out when an ending is added to make pronunciation smoother: ры́нок — на ры́нке.

- Коне́чно, до́рого! Это же ры́нок. Иди́ в суперма́ркет. Там деше́вле.
- Спаси́бо! Пока́.
- Пока́.

- Of course it’s expensive! This is a market, after all. Go to a supermarket - it’s cheaper there.
- Thanks! Bye.
- Bye.

Here, «деше́вле» is the comparative degree of the adverb «дёшево» (cheaply).
Grammar note: In the phrase "Там деше́вле" (It's cheaper there), 'cheaper' describes the situation (buying things). It acts as an adverb modifying the location там (there), coming from the adverb дёшево (cheaply) (though we use the short comparative form cheaper).

А вот и наш суперма́ркет. Посмо́трим, что там мо́жно купи́ть.

And here’s our supermarket. Let’s see what we can buy there.

In Russian, verbs come in pairs: покупа́ть - to buy (imperfective - the process) and купи́ть - to buy (perfective - the result).
Why we use the perfective verb in the question "Что там мо́жно купи́ть?" (What can you buy there?) It is used because the question focuses on the final result (successfully acquiring an item), rather than the ongoing process of shopping.

Интере́сно, ско́лько сто́ит карто́шка? Всего́ 50 (пятьдеся́т) рубле́й за килогра́мм. Пра́вда дёшево! Возьму́ побо́льше.

I wonder how much potatoes cost? Only 50 (fifty) rubles per kilogram. That’s really cheap! I’ll take quite a lot.

The pair of verbs "брать" - to take (Imperfective aspect) and "взять" - to take (Perfective aspect) is also an aspectual pair, much like "покупать" - to buy and "купить" - to buy.
взять - to take (infinitive)
Future Tense: note that perfective verbs do not have a Present Tense - only Past and Future Tenses.
я возьму́
ты возьмёшь
он, она возьмёт
мы возьмём
вы возьмёте
они возьму́т
Возьми́! Возьми́те! (Imperative)

А я́блоки? Ско́лько сто́ят я́блоки? А! 150 (сто пятьдеся́т) рубле́й. То́́же недо́рого.

And what about apples? How much do apples cost? Ah! 150 (one hundred and fifty) rubles. That’s not expensive either.

How to Count in Russian рубли (rubles):
In Russian, the word рубль (ruble) changes its form depending on the number that comes before it. Think of it as having three simple rules:
1 рубль (1, 21, 31, 101...) Nominative singular.
Example: 1 рубль, 21 рубль, 31 рубль and so on.
2, 3, 4 рубля́ (2 - 4, 22 - 24, 102 - 104...) Genitive singular.
Example: 2 рубля́, 3 рубля́, 4 рубля́ and so on.
5 to 20 рубле́й and numbers ending in 0, 5–9 (5, 11–20, 25, 100...) Genitive plural.
Example: 5 рубле́й, 10 рубле́й, 100 рублей

Quick Rule of Thumb: Look at the last digit of the number!
Ends in 1 - рубль
Ends in 2, 3, 4 - рубля́
Ends in 5–9, 0, or teens (11–19) - рубле́й

А здесь что? Так, йогурт, молоко, сыр, масло.

And what’s here? Let’s see - yogurt, milk, cheese, butter.

If you go to a Russian supermarket, you will see a huge dairy section. The love for dairy products was built over centuries. Here is why:

1. Long winters: Winters in Russia are very long and cold. Growing plants was hard, but cows and goats gave milk, butter, and cheese all year.
2. Good land: Central Russia has many big green fields, which is great for cows.
3. Traditional fasting: In the past, people in Russia could not eat meat for many days of the year. But they could eat milk and cottage cheese on those days.
4. Soviet history: In the past, the Soviet government supported livestock farming and made a lot of milk, kefir, and sour cream, and everyone started to eat them every day.

Today, Russians still love dairy and eat it every day!

- О, моско́вская колбаса́! Это, наве́рное, о́чень вку́сно!
- Да, попро́буйте.
- Спаси́бо.

- Oh, Moscow-style sausage! This must be delicious!
- Yes, do try some.
- Thank you.

Why is there so much sausage (kolbasa) in Russian supermarkets?
If you visit a Russian store, you will see a huge section of sausages. This tradition was also built over centuries, and here is why:

1. Long winters and meat storage: Winters in Russia are very cold, but summers are warm. In the past, people needed ways to keep meat safe to eat for a long time. Making sausage (kolbasa) was a great way to preserve meat.
2. Soviet history: In the Soviet Union, the government made sausage a standard, easy food for everyone. It was quick to buy, easy to slice, and convenient for busy workers and families.
3. A daily staple: Today, Russians love having kolbasa for breakfast (on a sandwich), as a quick snack, or for making salads.

Because of this, Russian supermarkets always have a massive choice of sausages!

- 1325 (ты́сяча три́ста два́дцать пять) рубле́й, пожа́луйста.
- Хорошо́.
- Нали́чные или ка́рта?
- Коне́чно, ка́рта.

- That’s 1,325 (one thousand three hundred and twenty-five) rubles, please.
- Alright.
- Cash or card?
- Card, of course.

In Moscow, basically, you don't need cash because you can pay with a card or other electronic payments everywhere and for everything.

Ну вот, тепе́рь я зна́ю, где и как покупа́ть проду́кты в Москве́.

Well, now I know where and how to buy groceries in Moscow.

"В Москве́" (In Moscow) is another example of the Prepositional case used for location. However, it uses the preposition "в" (in) instead of "на" (on), and the noun also gets the ending "-е": Москва́ - в Москве́.