Practice your Portuguese by listening to and translating songs from Portuguese to your native language. This song is called “Lisboa, Menina e Moça“, by Carlos do Carmo.
I’ve translated the song into English after the lyrics below. (the music video is not mine nor was it produced by me).
If you’re here from the 30-Day Free Portuguese Challenge for your daily goal, the task for today is to listen to the song a few times and try to follow along with the lyrics in Portuguese. At the end of the task, try to rate yourself and include the date. This is so you can later come back to this exercise and see how you have improved over time. Let’s jump in. (You don’t need to be a part of the challenge to do these suggested exercises 😉 )
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Tasks for the 30-Day Portuguese Challenge
- Beginners: Really actively listen to how the words are being pronounced. Before looking at the translation, underline the words you know and circle the ones you don’t. Write the words you don’t know into a list on your paper and save them for later. The main goal is to listen to the sounds of the language and be introduced to new vocabulary. If you’d like to take a step further, now look up words in the online dictionary and make notes if they are used in other contexts.
- Intermediates: After listening and looking at the lyrics – BUT NOT the translation yet – analyse the words more closely. Write down a summary of what you think the song is about. Then compare that to the translation. Then separate the words into different categories such as which ones are verbs (actions), which ones are nouns (names of things and people or animals) and which ones are adjectives (descriptions). You can go a step further and indicate what tense the verbs are in. The main goal is to see how your comprehension is progressing and what you need to work more on.
- Advanced: After listening and looking at the Portuguese lyrics, your task is to translate the lyrics without any help. If you come across a word you’ve never seen, try an educated guess before looking it up in the dictionary. It doesn’t always have to make perfect sense. As I’m sure you know, sometimes artists will use a word or pronounce it in an uncommon way so it fits with the rhyme. Then compare it to the translation and see how you did. If you have the opportunity to go a little further, write a composition stating your opinion on the song. And that can be anything you like: the lyrics, the melody, the voice, the feelings, how you would change it if you didn’t like it, you name it. Try to include compound tenses and the subjunctive mood in your composition.
Lisboa, Menina e Moça (Lisbon, girl and young woman) by Carlos do Carmo
No Castelo, ponho um cotovelo
Em Alfama, descanso o olhar
E assim desfaço o novelo
De azul e mar
À Ribeira encosto a cabeça
A almofada da cama do Tejo
Com lençóis bordados à pressa
Na cambraia de um beijo
Lisboa, menina e moça, menina
Da luz que os meus olhos veem tão pura
Teus seios são as colinas, varina
Pregão que me traz à porta, ternura
Cidade a ponto luz bordada
Toalha à beira-mar estendida
Lisboa, menina e moça, amada
Cidade, mulher da minha vida
No Terreiro, eu passo por ti
Mas da Graça, eu vejo-te nua
Quando um pombo te olha, sorri
És mulher da rua
E no bairro mais alto do sonho
Ponho o fado que soube inventar
Aguardente de vida e medronho
Que me faz cantar
Lisboa, menina e moça, menina
Da luz que os meus olhos veem tão pura
Teus seios são as colinas, varina
Pregão que me traz à porta, ternura
Cidade a ponto luz bordada
Toalha à beira-mar estendida
Lisboa, menina e moça, amada
Cidade, mulher da minha vida
Lisboa no meu amor, deitada
Cidade por minhas mãos despida
Lisboa, menina e moça, amada
Cidade, mulher da minha vida
Translation
I put an elbow in the Castle
In Alfama, I rest my gaze
And so I unravel the ball of yarn
Of blue and sea
At Ribeira I lay my head
The pillow of the Tagus bed
With hastily embroidered sheets
In the cambric of a kiss
Lisbon, girl and young woman, girl
Of the light my eyes see so pure
Your breasts are the hills, varina
Preach that brings me to the door, tenderness
City of embroidered light
A towel spread out by the sea
Lisbon, girl and young woman, beloved
City, woman of my life
In Terreiro, I pass you by
But from Graça, I see you naked
When a pigeon looks at you, it smiles
You’re a woman of the street
And in the highest neighbourhood of the dream
I put on the fado I knew how to invent
Aguardente de vida e medronho
That makes me sing
Lisbon, girl and young woman, girl
Of the light that my eyes see so pure
Your breasts are the hills, fishwife
Preach that brings me to the door, tenderness
City of embroidered light
A towel spread out by the sea
Lisbon, girl and young woman, beloved
City, woman of my life
Lisbon in my love, lying down
City undressed by my hands
Lisbon, girl and young woman, beloved
City, woman of my life
For more songs in Portuguese click here. To learn more about the 30-Day Portuguese Challenge click here or sign up below.