Στον τερματικό σταθμό είχε πολύ κόσμο, οπότε περιμέναμε δίπλα στην κυλιόμενη σκάλα.

Στον is the contraction of σε + τον:

• σε = in / at / to
• τον = the (masculine singular, accusative)

So:

• στον τερματικό σταθμό = at the terminal station / in the terminal

Greek very often contracts σε + article:

• σε τον → στον
• σε τη(ν) → στη(ν)
• σε το → στο

That is why later you also see στην κυλιόμενη σκάλα.

Because after the preposition σε (here in the form στον), the noun phrase goes into the accusative.

So the dictionary form is:

• ο τερματικός σταθμός = the terminal station / terminal

But after σε it becomes:

• στον τερματικό σταθμό

Both the adjective and the noun change form to match the accusative masculine singular.

This is very common in Greek:

• ο καλός φίλος → στον καλό φίλο
• ο μεγάλος δρόμος → στον μεγάλο δρόμο

Literally, it means something like terminal station or end station.

Depending on context, it can refer to a:

• bus terminal
• train terminal
• metro terminal
• transport terminal in general

A learner might expect just τερματικός, but Greek often uses a fuller noun phrase like τερματικός σταθμός.

In everyday real-life Greek, the exact wording can vary by situation. For example, people may also use more specific words depending on whether they mean a bus station, airport terminal, etc.

This is a very common Greek pattern. Έχει / είχε can be used impersonally to mean:

• there is / there are
• there was / there were

So:

• είχε πολύ κόσμο literally looks like it had a lot of people
• but naturally it means there were a lot of people or it was crowded

No specific subject is needed. Greek often uses έχει this way in everyday speech.

Similar examples:

• Έχει πολλή κίνηση. = There is a lot of traffic.
• Είχε φασαρία. = It was noisy / There was a lot of noise.
• Δεν έχει χώρο. = There is no space.

Because κόσμος in Greek often works like a collective noun when it means people / crowd.

So:

• πολύ κόσμο = a lot of people / a lot of crowd

Here κόσμο is singular in form, but its meaning is collective. This is extremely common Greek usage.

Compare:

• Είχε πολύ κόσμο. = There were a lot of people.
• Είχε πολλούς ανθρώπους. = There were many people.

Both are possible, but πολύ κόσμο sounds especially natural and idiomatic when talking about a place being crowded.

Also note that κόσμο is accusative because it is the object of είχε.

Περιμέναμε is the imperfect of περιμένω (to wait). The imperfect is used for:

• ongoing actions in the past
• repeated actions in the past
• background description

Here it fits because the sentence describes a situation in progress:

• the terminal was crowded
• so we were waiting beside the escalator

The focus is not on a single completed moment of waiting, but on the ongoing action.

Compare:

• περιμέναμε = we were waiting / we waited (in an ongoing sense)
• περιμέναμε για ώρα = we were waiting for a while

Aorist would be less natural here if you wanted to describe the scene as background.

Yes, here οπότε means so, therefore, or as a result.

It connects the two parts of the sentence:

• it was crowded at the terminal
• so we waited next to the escalator

In everyday Greek, οπότε is very common in speech and informal writing for this kind of result meaning.

Rough equivalents in English:

• so
• therefore
• which is why

Depending on context, οπότε can also have a more literal time-related sense in some structures, but here it clearly means so.

Because οπότε introduces the result of the first clause.

The sentence has two linked parts:

1. Στον τερματικό σταθμό είχε πολύ κόσμο
2. οπότε περιμέναμε δίπλα στην κυλιόμενη σκάλα

The comma helps separate the cause/situation from the result.

In Greek punctuation, this is very normal with connectors like οπότε, especially when joining two full clauses.

Δίπλα means next to / beside.

It is usually followed by σε + article/noun, so:

• δίπλα στην κυλιόμενη σκάλα = next to the escalator

You can think of it as:

• δίπλα σε = next to

And then σε την contracts to στην.

Examples:

• δίπλα στο σπίτι = next to the house
• δίπλα στον φίλο μου = next to my friend
• δίπλα στην πόρτα = next to the door

Greek often says κυλιόμενη σκάλα, which literally means moving staircase.

• κυλιόμενη = moving / rolling
• σκάλα = staircase / stairs

Together they mean escalator.

This is a very transparent compound-like phrase, and it is standard Greek.

Because it follows σε (in the form στην), it appears in the accusative feminine singular:

• dictionary form: η κυλιόμενη σκάλα
• after σε: στην κυλιόμενη σκάλα

Because it has to agree with σκάλα.

• σκάλα is feminine singular
• so the adjective/participle must also be feminine singular

That is why you get:

• η κυλιόμενη σκάλα
• στην κυλιόμενη σκάλα

If the noun were masculine or neuter, the form would change accordingly.

So this is just normal Greek agreement:

• gender
• number
• case

all have to match.

Yes. Greek has several natural ways to express the idea that a place was crowded.

For example:

• είχε πολύ κόσμο = there were a lot of people / it was crowded
• ήταν γεμάτο = it was full
• ήταν γεμάτος κόσμος is not the normal way, but ήταν γεμάτο for the place works well

However, είχε πολύ κόσμο is especially common and conversational. It focuses on the presence of many people rather than just describing the place as full.

The sentence’s word order is natural, but Greek is more flexible than English.

This order:

• Στον τερματικό σταθμό είχε πολύ κόσμο

puts the location first, which helps set the scene: At the terminal, there were a lot of people.

You could also hear variants such as:

• Είχε πολύ κόσμο στον τερματικό σταθμό.

That would still be correct, but it places slightly more emphasis on there were a lot of people, with the location added after.

So the word order here is mainly about focus and flow, not basic grammatical correctness.