Valparaiso

Valparaiso

Valparaiso

I have never known historyYo no he sabido nunca de historia
One day I was born there simplyUn dia naci alli sencillamente
The old port watched over my childhoodEl viejo puerto vigilo mi infancia
With a face of cold indifferenceCon rostro de fria indiferencia
Because I was not born poor and always hadPorque no nací pobre y siempre tuve
An inconceivable fear of poverty.Un miedo inconcebible a la pobreza.

I want to tell you what I have observedYo les quiero contar lo que he observado
So we can get to know each otherPara que nos vayamos conociendo
The inhabitant chained the streets;El habitante encadeno las calles;
The rain faded the stairsLa lluvia destiño las escaleras
And a blanket of sadness coveredY un manto de tristeza fue cubriendo
The hills with their streets and children.Los cerros con sus calles y sus niños.

And the storm came and the drizzleY vino el temporal y la llovizna
With its load of sand and waste,Con su carga de arena y desperdicio,
Death passed by so many times,Por ahi paso la muerte tantas veces,
Death that mourned ValparaisoLa muerte que enluto a valparaiso
And once again the wind as always,Y una vez mas el viento como siempre,
Cleaned the face of this wounded port.Limpio la cara de este puerto herido.

But this port ties like hunger,Pero este puerto amarra como el hambre,
You can't live without knowing itNo se puede vivir sin conocerlo
You can't live without missing us,No se puede vivir sin que nos falte,
Flutter south wind the kitesFlamear viento sur los volantines
The crab fisherman who saddensEl pescador de jaivas que entristece
Our landscape of the waterfront.Nuestro paisaje de la costanera.

I have never known historyYo no he sabido nunca de historia
One day I was born there simplyUn dia naci alli sencillamente
The old port watched over my childhoodEl viejo puerto vigilo mi infancia
With a face of cold indifferenceCon rostro de fria indiferencia
Because I was not born poor and always hadPorque no nací pobre y siempre tuve
An inconceivable fear of poverty.Un miedo inconcebible a la pobreza.