NOTE: This anecdote will eventually be caterogized as #culture, #chile and roll up under the "The Great Chilean North" post.
San Pedro de Atacama features excellent food and nightlife options, often blending the two. On this evening, we ended up at "Barros", the typical "penha folklorica" aka live music venue meets pub & restaurant. The place was properly apportioned with heaters distributed across main floor (super important in desert weather). The venue looked epic, including a giant Chilean flag draped across the back wall, overlooking rustic communal-type tables. First order of business: a round of Pisco Sour. Pisco is the delectable high-proof spirit native to Chile and Peru.
A local singer-song writer took the stage, playing tunes on the "charango" (local string instrument). At some point he started playing songs by Victor Jara; one of the greats of Latin American folklore. The mood changed.
He began with "La Partida" ("the start") which paints a picture of the majestic Andean desert, the imposing Andes mountains, the rolling hills of the Central region -- you get the idea :)
He followed this with a wonderful rendition of "Charagua"; a tune that marked my childhood. TVChile (think Chile's BBC) took it as the theme of "Tevito", its cute dog mascot. It's a tune that was as popular with adults as it was with children.
Tevito was banned by Chile's military dictatorship for being subversive, but the music lived on. There is so much history here, both of the country's difficult past (it's complicated) and also my early years in Chile. My mother sympathized with the resistance movement and I grew up with these tunes (among many others). It wasn't until I was studying abroad in Germany and started singing a lullaby to my friends, that I realized it was a communist anthem "If I only had a hammer..". Dad is on the exact opposite end of the spectrum (he grew up as an aristocrat). The nostalgia was overwhelming.
Afterward, a Frenchman (Pierre) approached our table and asked if anyone knew who this artist was and where he could find more of this music (I happily scribbled the info). It was beautiful to see the appeal of anthems, an appeal which transcends borders and languages.
I ended the night in a tavern called "Adobe", which features a large fire pit and great selection of local wines; also highly recommended :)
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