Al llegar a la cumbre, vimos un acantilado muy bonito y una bahía llena de luz.

When we reached the summit, we saw a very beautiful cliff and a bay full of light.

Breakdown of Al llegar a la cumbre, vimos un acantilado muy bonito y una bahía llena de luz.

• un: a
• una: a
• muy: very
• nosotros: we

Questions & Answers about Al llegar a la cumbre, vimos un acantilado muy bonito y una bahía llena de luz.

What does al llegar mean, and how is it built?

Al + infinitive is a very common Spanish structure meaning when doing, upon doing, or on doing something.

So:

• al llegar = when arriving / upon arriving
• In natural English here, it often becomes when we arrived

It is formed from:

• a + el = al
• plus an infinitive, here llegar

So literally, it is something like on arriving, but in normal translation it often sounds better as when we arrived.

---

Why is there an a in llegar a la cumbre?

Because llegar normally uses the preposition a before a destination.

Examples:

• llegar a la playa = to arrive at the beach
• llegar al pueblo = to arrive at the town
• llegar a la cumbre = to arrive at the summit

Notice:

• a + el = al
• but a + la stays a la

So:

• al puerto
• a la cumbre

---

What exactly does mean?