the poet laureate of concepción

when i lived in chile i used to go to an empanada* bar named 'Treinta y Tantos'. this dark little haven was home to the best empanadas in all of south america, and also made a mean pisco sour**. i spent many an evening there drinking and eating with friends, and wondering whether or not the barman actually was saddam hussein (the resemblance was uncanny).

there was an old man who would come into the bar every night, a distinguished gentleman always dressed in a navy suit with his hair neatly coiffed. he walked up and down the bar strip selling his poems, handwritten on cards he'd decorated himself. he was so nice and grandfatherly that i couldn't help buying a few every time i saw him (this wasn't a problem as they cost about 30 cents each).

today i came across some of his poems in my desk drawer, and they made me smile, and so i thought i'd share his wisdom with you all.

la amistad es el perfume del amor

- friendship is the perfume of love

el amor es una enfermedad que necesita una cama

- love is a sickness that needs a bed

el amor nace en una mirada, vive en un beso, muere en una lágrima

- love is born in a look, lives in a kiss, dies in a tear

compartir las ideas, los recuerdos, la esperanza...(es la solución)

- sharing the ideas, the memories, the hope...(is the soution)


and my personal favourite:

nuestro partido debe ser financiado por el estado

- our party should be financed by the state


*kinda like a pastie, you uncultured heathens

**pisco is the national drink of peru and chile. and a principal cause of the open hostility between the neighbouring countries. no joke.