La reunión duró sesenta minutos, pero la charla final fue la parte más interesante.

Duró is the preterite, which is used for a completed event in the past. The meeting lasted a specific amount of time, sixty minutes, so Spanish naturally uses the preterite here.

• La reunión duró sesenta minutos = the meeting lasted sixty minutes
• La reunión duraba sesenta minutos would sound more like background information, a habitual duration, or part of a larger context.

So in this sentence, duró is the normal choice because the event is seen as finished.

Here, fue is also the preterite, because the speaker is identifying what the most interesting part was in that completed event.

• Fue la parte más interesante = it turned out to be / it was the most interesting part
• Era la parte más interesante would sound more descriptive or like background information, and it could work in some contexts, but fue is more natural when talking about one finished event and giving a conclusion about it.

A useful way to think about it:

• era = description/background
• fue = completed event / specific conclusion

Spanish often omits subject pronouns because the verb ending already shows who or what the subject is, and the context makes it clear.

In this sentence:

• duró clearly refers to la reunión
• fue clearly refers to la charla final

So adding subject pronouns would usually be unnecessary.

Yes. Both reunión and charla are feminine nouns, so they take la.

• la reunión = the meeting
• la charla = the chat/talk

You can also see agreement later in the sentence:

• la parte más interesante

Here, parte is also feminine, so it uses la as well.

Charla usually means a talk, chat, or informal discussion. Its exact meaning depends on context.

Compared with similar words:

• charla = often informal, relaxed, conversational
• conversación = conversation, usually between people talking
• conferencia = conference or formal lecture
• ponencia = presentation/paper, often in academic or professional settings

In this sentence, la charla final probably means the final talk or the final discussion, not necessarily a casual chat between friends.

In Spanish, most adjectives normally come after the noun.

So:

• la charla final = the final talk
• la parte más interesante = the most interesting part

Putting final before the noun would usually sound unusual here. The normal order is:

• noun + adjective

Spanish usually uses the definite article with superlatives:

• la parte más interesante = the most interesting part

This is the normal pattern:

• el/la/los/las + noun + más/menos + adjective

Examples:

• el libro más largo = the longest book
• la ciudad más bonita = the prettiest city

So la parte más interesante is the standard way to say the most interesting part.

Spanish forms most comparatives and superlatives with más or menos, not by changing the adjective ending.

So:

• interesante = interesting
• más interesante = more interesting / most interesting, depending on context

In this sentence, because it is preceded by la parte, it means the most interesting part.

Spanish does not usually create forms like English bigger, smaller, nicer by changing the adjective itself. Instead, it says:

• más grande
• más pequeño
• más bonito

With verbs like durar, Spanish often expresses duration directly, without a preposition.

• La reunión duró sesenta minutos = The meeting lasted sixty minutes

This is normal because durar already contains the idea of duration.

English often says:

• lasted sixty minutes

not:

• lasted for sixty minutes only

Spanish works similarly here. You do not need por.

That is the normal word order in Spanish:

• La reunión = subject
• duró = verb
• sesenta minutos = duration/complement

So:

• La reunión duró sesenta minutos

Spanish is fairly flexible with word order, but this version is the most neutral and natural.

Pero means but and introduces a contrast.

The contrast is:

• the meeting lasted sixty minutes
• but the final talk was the most interesting part

It links the two ideas and shows that the second one is the important or surprising point.

You might hear structures like fue de sesenta minutos in some contexts, but duró sesenta minutos is the most natural and direct way to express duration here.

Compare:

• La reunión duró sesenta minutos = very natural
• La reunión fue de sesenta minutos = understandable, but less direct and often less preferred in this context

For learners, durar + amount of time is the safest and most useful pattern.

They have accents for different reasons.

• reunión has an accent because of Spanish stress rules. The stress falls on the final syllable: reu-ni-ón.
• más has an accent to distinguish it from mas, which is a more literary word meaning but.

So:

• más = more
• mas = but (rare/literary)

The accent helps show the correct word and pronunciation.