Скалолазка [Skalolazka] [English translation]

I asked you, "Why are you going into the mountains?"

And you were going straight to the top, you were spoiling for a fight.

I told you, "But one can see the Mount Everest from a plane perfectly well!"

You laughed and took me with you.

And since then you became close to me and you became gentle,

My alpinist, my mountaineer.

You were smiling when you were tugging me out from a chasm,

You were smiling, my mountaineer!

And then, when I was eating your supper and praising it a lot,

Because of these damn crevices

I got from you two short plugs on the ear,

But I was not offended, I was repeating again and again:

"Oh, you are so close and so gentle,

My alpinist, my mountaineer."

Every time when you were getting me out of the crevices

You were berating me, my alpinist!…

And then during each of our climbing marches--

Why are you so distrustful of me?--

You were enjoying yourself a lot belaying me,

My elastic alpinist!

Oh, you are so distant from me, so ungentle,

My alpinist, my mountaineer.

Every time you were tugging me out of a chasm,

You were teaching me, my mountaineer.

I was putting in every effort to reach out to you

Finally, you are at my arm's reach!

I'll finish the climb and will tell you: "Darling, enough is enough!"

Just at this moment I felt down, but I had enough time to tell you:

"Oh, you are so close and so gentle,

My alpinist, my mountain-gentle mountaineer."

Now we are tied together by the same rope,

We both became mountaineers!

• Artist:Vladimir Vysotsky