Katia Cardenal became famous as a Nueva Cancion singer in Nicaragua, workin… Read Full Bio ↴Katia Cardenal became famous as a Nueva Cancion singer in Nicaragua, working with her brother Salvador as "Guardabarranco". They gained worldwide fame with the release of an album on Redwood Records. She later married and moved to Norway, where she issued an album of songs by the Norwegian songwriter Alf Prøysen, sung in Spanish and backed by an amazing array of Cuban Musicians "Fragancia".

En Mi Calle
Katia Cardenal Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

En mi calle hay una acera gris
donde se pegan las miradas
del que mira adonde vá.

En mi calle hay un banco que es
tan largo y blanco como el mármol
donde iremos a parar.

Yo no sé por qué son tan altas
las blancas ventanas que miran al cielo.
En mi calle el mundo no habla
la gente se mira y se pasa con miedo.

Si yo no viviera en la ciudad
quizás vería el árbol sucio
donde iba yo a jugar.

En mi calle de silencio está
y va pasando por mi lado
es un recuerdo desigual.

Yo no sé por qué estoy mirando
por qué estoy cantando,
por qué estoy viviendo

Yo no sé por qué estoy llorando
por qué estoy amando,
por qué estoy muriendo.

Silvio Rodriguez

Overall Meaning

The song "En Mi Calle" by Katia Cardenal is a reflective piece about the artist's observations of the world around her, specifically the street she lives on. The first verse describes a gray sidewalk where people's glances stick as they look ahead to where they are going. The second verse highlights a long white bench similar in color to marble where she assumes people will end up resting. The third verse raises questions about the height of the white windows that look up at the sky and how in her street, people are silent and fearful of one another.

The artist then goes on to ponder about how she might see the world differently if she lived outside the city and could notice small things like a dirty tree she used to play on. The following verse emphasizes the silence in her street and the idea that memories pass by indifferently. The last two stanzas describe the artist's confusion about her own emotions and actions, suggesting an overarching theme of uncertainty and introspection. The lyrics are poetically written, with frequent contrast and metaphors used to paint a vivid picture of the artist's street and her thoughts about life.

Line by Line Meaning

En mi calle hay una acera gris
On my street, there's a sidewalk that's as gray as the sky, where people's gaze meet.

donde se pegan las miradas
Where people's eyes meet and stare at each other.

del que mira adonde va.
From those who look ahead, thinking about where they're going.

En mi calle hay un banco que es
On my street, there's a long, white bench, shining like marble.

tan largo y blanco como el marmol
It's the place where we end up, sharing stories and memories.

donde iremos a parar.
A place where we'll all end up eventually.

Yo no sé por qué son tan altas
I don't know why the windows that look up to the sky are so high.

las blancas ventanas que miran al cielo.
Those windows that seem to be searching for something up above.

En mi calle el mundo no habla
On my street, the world is silent.

la gente se mira y se pasa con miedo.
People look at each other with fear and hurry past one another.

Si yo no viviera en la ciudad
If I didn't live in the city,