Valparaiso
Los Miserables
Lyrics
Translation
Yo no he sabido nunca de historia
I have never known about history
Un dia naci alli sencillamente
One day, I was born there, simply
El viejo puerto vigilo mi infancia
The old port watched over my childhood
Con rostro de fria indiferencia
With a face of cold indifference
Porque no nací pobre y siempre tuve
Because I wasn't born poor and always had
Un miedo inconcebible a la pobreza.
An inconceivable fear of poverty.
Yo les quiero contar lo que he observado
I want to tell you what I've observed
Para que nos vayamos conociendo
So that we can get to know each other
El habitante encadeno las calles;
The inhabitant chained the streets;
La lluvia destiño las escaleras
The rain stained the stairs
Y un manto de tristeza fue cubriendo
And a cloak of sadness covered
Los cerros con sus calles y sus niños.
The hills with their streets and children.
Y vino el temporal y la llovizna
And the storm came with drizzle
Con su carga de arena y desperdicio,
With its load of sand and waste,
Por ahi paso la muerte tantas veces,
Death passed through here so many times,
La muerte que enluto a valparaiso
Death that mourned Valparaiso,
Y una vez mas el viento como siempre,
And once again, the wind, as always,
Limpio la cara de este puerto herido.
Cleaned the face of this wounded port.
Pero este puerto amarra como el hambre,
But this port ties you up like hunger,
No se puede vivir sin conocerlo
You can't live without knowing it,
No se puede vivir sin que nos falte,
You can't live without missing,
Flamear viento sur los volantines
South wind flying kites
El pescador de jaivas que entristece
The jaiva fisherman that saddens
Nuestro paisaje de la costanera.
Our landscape from the waterfront.
Yo no he sabido nunca de historia
I have never known about history
Un dia naci alli sencillamente
One day, I was born there, simply
El viejo puerto vigilo mi infancia
The old port watched over my childhood
Con rostro de fria indiferencia
With a face of cold indifference
Porque no nací pobre y siempre tuve
Because I wasn't born poor and always had
Un miedo inconcebible a la pobreza.
An inconceivable fear of poverty.