Homer's Travels: Peru -That's not a Simon and Garfunkel song!

Saturday, September 02, 2006

Peru -That's not a Simon and Garfunkel song!

On our second day in Peru we took a bus down to Ica where we were going to fly over the Nazca lines. Since our plane was not ready, we stopped at a nearby resort to have lunch. While we were eating, the musicians started playing a song on their flutes that sounded like a Simon and Garfunkel song. After that, everywhere we went I heard the same Simon and Garfunkel song. It was driving me crazy. Someone was even whistling it at the Gate of the Sun at Machu Piccu. I wanted to hear Peruvian music but instead I got Simon and Garfunkel. We were all laughing about it after hearing it repeated so many times. Finally, while taking a boat ride on Lake Titicaca, I heard the song again and it occurred to me that maybe Simon and Garfunkel 'borrowed' the melody from Peru. When I got back home, I did some investigating and , sure enough, the song, "El Cóndor Pasa", is based on a Peruvian musical play.

Makes me smile just thinking about the misplaced frustration I felt listening to that song. But then, everything about Peru makes me smile. What a great vacation.

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