Learn Hardcore Greek: Μετά την πρόβα ανεβαίναμε στην ταράτσα του σχολείου και κοιτάζαμε την πόλη, και τώρα έχω πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις από εκεί. - After the rehearsal we went up to the school’s rooftop and looked at the city, and now I have very nice memories from there.

The basic form of the noun is η πρόβα (nominative: “the rehearsal”).
After μετά, it has to go into the accusative, so η πρόβα → την πρόβα.
So Μετά την πρόβα literally means “After the rehearsal.”

You will often see μετά + accusative used for “after [time/event]”:

μετά το μάθημα – after the lesson
μετά τη δουλειά – after work

Why is ανεβαίναμε in the imperfect tense instead of ανεβήκαμε?

Ανεβαίναμε is the imperfect (παρατατικός) of ανεβαίνω and it shows an ongoing, repeated or habitual action in the past.

ανεβαίναμε = we used to go up / we were going up (repeatedly)
ανεβήκαμε (aorist) = we went up (once, as a single event)

In this sentence, the speaker is describing something they used to do regularly after rehearsal, so the imperfect fits:
Μετά την πρόβα ανεβαίναμε... = After rehearsal we would go up... (each time, as a habit).

Why is κοιτάζαμε also in the imperfect? Could it be κοιτάξαμε?

Yes, κοιτάζαμε is also in the imperfect for the same reason.

κοιτάζαμε την πόλη = we used to look at the city / we would look at the city (regular, repeated activity)
κοιτάξαμε την πόλη = we looked at the city (once)

Because it is part of the same habitual sequence (after rehearsal → go up → look at the city), Greek uses the imperfect for both verbs to show this ongoing/repeated routine in the past.

Why is there no word for “we” in the Greek sentence? Where is the subject?

Greek is a “pro‑drop” language, meaning it normally omits subject pronouns when the verb ending already shows the person and number.

ανεβαίναμε = we were going up
- ‑αμε ending → 1st person plural (we)
κοιτάζαμε = we were looking
- again ‑αμε → “we”

So εμείς (we) is understood from the verb forms and is only added for emphasis:

Εμείς ανεβαίναμε στην ταράτσα... = We (as opposed to others) used to go up to the roof...

What exactly does ταράτσα mean? Is it the same as “roof”?

Ταράτσα is best translated as “(flat) roof / rooftop”, usually one that you can stand on and use as a terrace.

It’s not just any roof; it’s typically a flat, accessible surface on top of a building.
English sometimes says “roof terrace” or just “roof” if the context is clear.

Other related words:

η στέγη – the roof as a structure (tiles etc.), not a place you go and hang out.
η οροφή – the ceiling inside a room.

So στην ταράτσα του σχολείου is “on the school’s rooftop / on the roof of the school.”

Why is it στην ταράτσα του σχολείου and not σε την ταράτσα or στο ταράτσα?

A couple of things are happening here:

Contraction of preposition + article
- σε + την → στην
  So σε την ταράτσα becomes στην ταράτσα in normal speech and writing.
Genitive to show possession
- του σχολείου is the genitive of το σχολείο (“the school”).
- της ταράτσας του σχολείου (if you spelled everything out) = “the roof of the school.”
  Here we just say στην ταράτσα του σχολείου = on the school’s rooftop / on the roof of the school.

We don’t say στο ταράτσα because ταράτσα is feminine (η ταράτσα), so the correct contracted form is στην (σε + την), not στο (σε + το).

Why is it κοιτάζαμε την πόλη and not just κοιτάζαμε πόλη? Do we always need the article?

The verb κοιτάζω takes a direct object in the accusative, so we need την πόλη (“the city”).

η πόλη (nominative) → την πόλη (accusative) after the verb.
Greek uses the definite article much more often than English, even in places where English might omit “the”.

So:

κοιτάζαμε την πόλη = we were looking at the city.
Leaving out the article (κοιτάζαμε πόλη) sounds wrong or at best very unnatural in standard Greek.

What does πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις mean exactly, and why is it πολύ and not πολλές?

Here πολύ is an adverb modifying the adjective ωραίες:

πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις = very nice memories / really nice memories
(literally: very nice memories)

If you said πολλές ωραίες αναμνήσεις:

πολλές is an adjective meaning many (feminine plural).
πολλές αναμνήσεις = many memories (quantity).

So:

πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις → focuses on how nice the memories are.
πολλές αναμνήσεις → focuses on how many memories there are.

Why does the sentence suddenly switch to the present with και τώρα έχω πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις after using past tenses?

The tense shift is deliberate and natural in Greek.

The first part (μετά την πρόβα ανεβαίναμε... κοιτάζαμε...) describes what happened regularly in the past.
The second part (και τώρα έχω πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις από εκεί) describes a present result/state: now I have very nice memories from there.

Greek often uses:

Past for what happened
Present for the current state or result of those past events

So the combination παρατατικός (imperfect) + present is completely normal here.

Why is it από εκεί and not just εκεί at the end? What does από add?

Από εκεί literally means “from there” and expresses origin/source.

έχω αναμνήσεις από εκεί = I have memories from there / of that place / from that time there.
If you only said έχω αναμνήσεις εκεί, it would sound odd; αναμνήσεις almost always needs a preposition to show what they’re memories of:
- αναμνήσεις από την παιδική μου ηλικία – memories from my childhood
- αναμνήσεις από το σχολείο – memories from school

So από is needed to link αναμνήσεις with their source.

Why is there a comma before the second και in ..., και τώρα έχω πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις από εκεί? And why is και repeated?

Comma before και
In Greek, a comma is often used before και when it introduces a new independent clause:
- ...κοιτάζαμε την πόλη, και τώρα έχω πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις...
  This divides:
- past, habitual actions
- present state (having memories)
Repetition of και
The second και connects what came before with a new idea/result:
- [We used to go up and look at the city], and now [I have very nice memories from there].

You could also say:

...κοιτάζαμε την πόλη και τώρα έχω πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις από εκεί.
without the comma; the original version just makes the separation between past actions and present result clearer.

What is the singular of αναμνήσεις, and how is the word formed?

The singular form is η ανάμνηση (a memory), and αναμνήσεις is the feminine plural nominative:

η ανάμνηση – the memory (singular)
οι αναμνήσεις – the memories (plural)

It is related to the idea of recalling / remembering (think of English “mnem‑” as in mnemonic). In this sentence:

πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις is in the accusative plural (because it’s the object of έχω):
- Έχω πολύ ωραίες αναμνήσεις. – I have very nice memories.