“On the Dock of San Blas” Lyrics
Album: Sueños Líquidos (Liquid Dreams), 1997
Style: Latin rock, probably a classic song by now. It is the legend of the woman at the dock of a San Blas island, who stood on the dock and waited for her lover to return, always, and who fell in love with the sea while waiting.
Country: Mexico
Listen: YouTube
Translation:
Ella despidió a su amor.
Él partió en un barco en el muelle de San Blas.
Él juró que volvería
Y, empapada en llanto, ella juró que esperaría.
She bid farewell to her lover.
He left on a boat from the dock at San Blas.
He swore he would return
And, puffed up with tears, she swore that she would wait.
Miles de lunas pasaron
Y siempre ella estaba en el muelle, esperando.
Muchas tardes se anidaron,
Se anidaron en su pelo y en sus labios.
Uh, uh, uh-uh, uh…
Uh, uh, uh-uh, uh… uh, uh…
Thousands of moons passed
And always she was on the dock, waiting.
Many afternoons made their nest,
They made their nest in her hair and in her lips.
Uh, uh, uh-uh, uh…
Uh, uh, uh-uh, uh… uh, uh…
Llevaba el mismo vestido
Y por si él volviera, no se fuera a equivocar.
Los cangrejos le mordían,
Su ropaje, su tristeza y su ilusión.
She wore her same dress
And so in case he returned, he wouldn’t be mistaken.
The crabs bit her,
Her clothes, her sadness and her hope.
Y el tiempo se escurrió,
Y sus ojos se le llenaron de amaneceres,
Y del mar se enamoró,
Y su cuerpo se enraizó en el muelle.
And time drained away,
And her eyes filled themselves with day breaks,
And with the sea she fell in love,
And her body rooted itself on the dock.
Sola, sola en el olvido.
Sola, sola con su espíritu.
Sola, sola con su amor, el mar.
Sola… en el muelle de San Blas.
Alone, alone in forget.
Alone, alone with her spirit.
Alone, alone with her love, the sea.
Alone… on the dock at San Blas.
Su cabello se blanqueó
Pero ningún barco a su amor le devolvía,
Y en el pueblo le decían,
Le decían la loca del muelle de San Blas.
Her hair whitened
But no boat came to return her lover,
And in the town they called her,
They called her the crazy woman of San Blas.
Y una tarde de abril
La intentaron trasladar al manicomio.
Nadie la pudo arrancar
Y, del mar, nunca jamás la separaron.
And one afternoon in April
They tried to transfer her to the insane asylum.
No one could pull her away
And, from the sea, never again could they separate her.
Sola, sola en el olvido.
Sola, sola con su espíritu.
Sola, sola con su amor, el mar.
Sola… en el muelle de San Blas.
Alone, alone in forget.
Alone, alone with her spirit.
Alone, alone with her love, the sea.
Alone… on the dock of San Blas.
Sola, sola en el olvido.
Sola, sola con su espíritu.
Sola. sola con el sol y el mar.
Sola… oh, sola.
Alone, alone in forget.
Alone, alone with her spirit.
Alone, alone with the sun and the sea.
Alone… oh, alone.
Sola en el olvido.
Sola, sola con su espíritu.
Sola, sola con su amor, el mar.
Sola… en el muelle de San Blas.
Alone, alone in forget.
Alone, alone with her spirit.
Alone, alone with her love, the sea.
Alone… on the dock of San Blas.
Oh, oh-oh, oh-oh, yeah…
Se quedó, se quedó,
Sola, sola.
Se quedó, se quedó,
Con el sol y con el mar.
She stayed, she stayed,
Alone, alone.
She stayed, she stayed,
With the sun and with the sea.
Se quedó ahí,
Se quedó hasta el fin,
Se quedó ahí,
Se quedó… en el muelle de San Blas.
She stayed there,
She stayed until the end,
She stayed there,
She stayed… on the dock at San Blas.
Translation Notes:
The concept of someone waiting by a dock for their loved one — eternally loyal, unmovable — is a common legend across various cultures.
Ella despidió a {su amor}.
She bid farewell to {her lover}.
She said goodbye to {the person she loved}.
Él partió en un barco en el muelle de San Blas.
Él juró que volvería.
He left on a boat from the dock at San Blas.
He swore he would return.
The location in this song, San Blas, refers to the Caribbean islands in the archipelago of San Blas, near Panama.
Su cabello se blanqueó
Pero {ningún} [barco] a <su amor> le devolvía.
Her hair whitened
But {no} [boat] came to return <her lover>.
Her hair whitened
But {no} [boat] would give back to her <her lover>.
devolver a = to return to; to give back to; to send back to
devolverle a = to return to her/him/them
Nadie {la} pudo arrancar
Y, del mar, [nunca jamás] la separaron.
No one could pull {her} away
And, from the sea, [never again] could they separate her.
No one could yank {her} away
And, from the sea, [never ever] would they separate her.
“En El Muelle de San Blas” by Mana, Suenos Liquidos — removed special characters for the WordPress search engine
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