A la salida, compramos un helado pequeño de vainilla para el camino y nos despedimos de la heladería hasta el próximo fin de semana.

A la salida is a common Spanish time expression meaning on the way out, when leaving, or at the exit depending on context.

Literally, it is:

• a = at/on
• la salida = the exit / the departure / the act of leaving

So here it means something like as we were leaving or on the way out.

A very similar alternative would be al salir, which also means when leaving.

Yes. Compramos can mean either:

• we buy (present)
• we bought (preterite)

The form is identical for nosotros in those two tenses.

In this sentence, it is understood as we bought because the whole sentence reads like a completed past event:

• compramos
• nos despedimos
• hasta el próximo fin de semana

So context tells you it is the preterite, not the present.

Both are possible, but they do not feel exactly the same.

• un helado pequeño = a small ice cream
  
  • This is the normal, literal way to describe size.
• un pequeño helado = a little ice cream
  
  • This can sound slightly more subjective, expressive, or literary.

In everyday Spanish, when you are simply describing the size of an object, the adjective usually goes after the noun, so helado pequeño is the most natural choice.

De vainilla means vanilla in the sense of vanilla-flavored.

Spanish often uses de + noun to describe flavor, material, or type:

• helado de vainilla = vanilla ice cream
• tarta de chocolate = chocolate cake
• camisa de algodón = cotton shirt

So de vainilla is the normal way to say the flavor here.

Para el camino literally means for the الطريق / for the way—in natural English, something like:

• for the walk
• for the road
• to eat on the way

It suggests they bought the ice cream to have while continuing their journey after leaving.

It is an idiomatic expression. In many contexts, para el camino means something you take with you rather than consume on the spot.

The verb is despedirse de, which means to say goodbye to.

So:

• me despido de = I say goodbye to
• te despides de = you say goodbye to
• nos despedimos de = we say goodbye to

The nos is part of the verb, not an extra word you can remove here. Without it, despedir usually means to dismiss, to fire, or to send off, depending on context.

So:

• nos despedimos de la heladería = we said goodbye to the ice cream shop

Because despedirse requires the preposition de.

The pattern is:

• despedirse de alguien/algo

Examples:

• Me despedí de mis amigos. = I said goodbye to my friends.
• Nos despedimos del hotel. = We said goodbye to the hotel.

So de la heladería is grammatically required after nos despedimos.

Yes, especially in a warm, playful, or slightly personified way.

Literally, they are saying goodbye to the ice cream shop, as if it were almost a familiar place. This is natural in Spanish and can sound affectionate or humorous.

It does not necessarily mean they spoke to the building itself in a serious way. It simply gives the sentence a friendly tone.

In Spanish, expressions like this usually need the article:

• hasta el próximo fin de semana
• hasta la semana que viene
• hasta el mes próximo

So el is the normal choice here.

Próximo means next, and fin de semana means weekend, so the whole phrase means until next weekend.

Both can mean next weekend, but próximo is more common and natural in this kind of everyday phrase.

• el próximo fin de semana = next weekend
• el siguiente fin de semana = the following weekend

Sometimes siguiente can sound a little more sequential, as if you are counting one after another. Próximo is usually the most natural translation of English next here.

Heladería means ice cream shop or ice cream parlor.

It comes from:

• helado = ice cream
• -ería = a suffix often used for shops or places associated with something

Other examples:

• panadería = bakery
• cafetería = café
• librería = bookshop

So la heladería is the place where you buy ice cream.

Because A la salida is an introductory time expression.

Spanish often places a comma after a phrase like this when it comes at the beginning of the sentence:

• Por la mañana, salimos temprano.
• Después de cenar, dimos un paseo.
• A la salida, compramos un helado...

The comma helps separate the setting or time frame from the main action.

Because the sentence is describing two completed actions in sequence:

1. compramos un helado pequeño de vainilla para el camino
2. nos despedimos de la heladería hasta el próximo fin de semana

Spanish often links actions like this with y when narrating what happened. It is a very natural storytelling structure:

• We bought... and we said goodbye...

Yes, that is the most natural interpretation here.

Because the sentence later mentions la heladería, the reader will normally understand:

• they were at the ice cream shop,
• as they were leaving it, they bought a small vanilla ice cream for the way,
• and said goodbye until next weekend.

So A la salida most likely means when leaving the ice cream shop.

Yes, it works as a natural closing idea meaning until next weekend.

Spanish often uses hasta + time expression to say when you will see someone or something again:

• Hasta mañana = See you tomorrow
• Hasta luego = See you later
• Hasta el sábado = See you on Saturday
• Hasta el próximo fin de semana = See you next weekend

Here it reinforces the idea that they expect to return to the ice cream shop next weekend.