MY DAILY ROUND

On weekdays the alarm-clock wakes me up at 6.30 and my working day begins. I am not an early riser so it is rather difficult for me to get out of bed especially in winter. Then I go to the bath-room, take a warm shower, clean my teeth and get dressed. I make my breakfast myself. While having breakfast I listen to the radio or look through newspapers.

I leave the house at 7.30. It takes me half an hour to get to the office. I work as a staff correspondent in the local daily. It is a very interesting job and it takes me a lot of time. Every day I speak with different new people, listen to them, take interviews and write articles. At 1 o’clock in the afternoon we have lunch in a small café just round the corner. Usually I work till 5. I come home at about 7 o’clock. I have supper. Then I sit in the living-room, drink tea, watch TV, call my friends or read foreign newspapers. It is always interesting for me to know what my foreign colleagues write.

Sometimes I have to stay at work till 6 or even 7 o’clock in the evening. When we have a lot of things to do we go to work on Saturdays. So by the end of the week I get very tired. All I can do on Sundays is to sleep till 11, watch TV, listen to music and read something in English.

And still I always look forward to my next working day because I like my job. I think it is very interesting and important.

MEALS

The usual meals in England are breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner or supper.

Breakfast is generally a bigger meal than they have on the Continent. In the morning Englishmen have their favourite breakfast of cornflakes with milk and sugar or porridge. They spread some marmalade on the toast and butter. They also have some coffee and a roll. Breakfast is often a quick meal.

The midday meal is called lunch (then the evening meal is called dinner) or dinner (then the evening meal is called supper). At about 1 o’clock most offices and small shops are closed for an hour. Factory workers usually eat in their canteens. The usual midday meal consists of two courses: a meat course with plenty of vegetables and a sweet pudding. Those who eat at home usually call this midday meal, dinner. It is a three- or four-course meal. The first course is soup. Then comes fish or meat served with various vegetables. Sometimes they have chicken or duck for a change. For dessert they have jelly or fruit.

Afternoon tea is taken at about 5 o’clock. This means a cup of tea and a cake or biscuit taken in the sitting room or at work.

If the midday meal is the chief one of the day in the evening they have much simpler supper: an omelette or sausage, sometimes bacon and eggs. But certainly it is not the same in every English home. The meal depends on the state of the housekeeping budget. Besides, tastes differ.