En la capital, paseamos por una muralla antigua antes de entrar en el barrio viejo.

In the capital, we walked along an old wall before going into the old neighborhood.

Breakdown of En la capital, paseamos por una muralla antigua antes de entrar en el barrio viejo.

• en: in
• nosotros: we
• antes de: before
• una: an

Questions & Answers about En la capital, paseamos por una muralla antigua antes de entrar en el barrio viejo.

What does paseamos mean here, and is it present or past?

Here, paseamos means something like we strolled, we walked around, or we went for a walk.

A useful point for learners: with -ar verbs, the nosotros form of the present and the preterite looks the same.

• paseamos = we stroll / we walk around
• paseamos = we strolled / we walked around

So how do you know which one it is? Context. In this sentence, the sequence with antes de entrar makes it sound like a past narration, so the natural reading is we strolled.

Why is it paseamos por and not paseamos en or paseamos a?

The verb pasear often goes with por when you mean moving through, around, or along a place.

• pasear por la ciudad = to stroll around the city
• pasear por el parque = to walk through the park
• pasear por una muralla = to walk along/on a wall

So por is the natural preposition here because it suggests movement within or along that space.

Using en would sound less natural with pasear in this meaning, and a would not fit this idea of wandering around.