盤點世界上的十大千年古城(下)
nasi, India
5.印度，瓦拉納西India is a world-famous birthplace of ancient civilizations, religions and spirituality and it is also a cradle of the oldest world cities. The holy city of India, Varanasi is located on the banks of the river Ganges and it is considered to be one of the oldest cities in the world. The Hindus believe that the city was established by God Shiva and the history of the city goes back to the 12th century BC.
印度是世界上著名的古文明、宗教和精神性的誕生地，印度的城市歷史不可謂不悠久。瓦拉納西，印度的聖城，坐落於恆河河畔，是世界上最古老的城市之一。印度教徒們認爲瓦拉納西是由他們的神溼婆所創，其歷史可追溯到公元前12世紀。
瓦拉納西，也叫貝拿勒斯，曾經是朝聖者和流浪者的朝拜之地。瓦拉納西是文化宗教名城，也是衆多名詩人、作家和音樂家的聚集之所。瓦拉納西盛產高端紡織品、香水、雕刻品和象牙，這使得這座城市具備巨大的工業發展潛力。如今，瓦拉納西儼然成爲手工藝術的中心。這座城市能爲你提供任何你能想到的東西，錦緞、地毯、玩具、象牙玻璃製品、香水、其他各類配飾以及珠寶，不一而足。
salem, Israel
4.以色列，耶路撒冷
Jerusalem is one of the most-visited cities of Israel and it is also the most important religious destination in the world. Jerusalem is known to be a holy place for Jews, Christians and Muslims. According to the Bible, Jerusalem was founded as the capital city of the united kingdom of Israel by David. Nowadays Jerusalem is inhabited by 800,000 residents with Jewish comprise more than 60 percent of population.
耶路撒冷是以色列最大的遊客聖地，也是世界上最重要的宗教聖地。它同時是猶太教徒、基督教徒以及穆斯林三教的聖地。據《聖經》之言，耶路撒冷是由大衛所建以用作以色列聯合國國都的所在。目前，耶路撒冷的常住人口達到80萬，猶太人佔總人口超過60%。Over the years Jerusalem has experienced multiple tragic events: it was exposed to numerous attacks, sieges and destructions. The Old City was established 4 thousand years ago, which are divided into four quadrants, today known as the Christian Quarter, the Muslim Quarter, the Armenian Quarter and the Jewish Quarter. In 1981 the Old Town was added to the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger. Modern city has spread far beyond the boundaries of the ancient center. Jerusalem bears an incredibly symbolic meaning for Jewish people from all over the world, as it signifies their desire to come back home.
長久以來，耶路撒冷可謂苦難不少，它曾遭受過數不清的攻擊、圍城及毀滅。耶路撒冷建城於4000年前，那時耶路撒冷被分爲4個區，即今天所說的基督教區、穆斯林區、亞美尼亞區和遊猶太區。1981年時，耶路撒冷的老城區被列入瀕危的世界遺蹟之列。耶路撒冷對世界各地的猶太人有着不同尋常的意義，它象徵着各地猶太人回家的渴望。os, Lebanon
3.黎巴嫩，比布魯斯
Byblos is another cradle of many ancient civilizations. It is one of the oldest cities of Phoenicia and it has been continually inhabited for about 5,000 years, even though the first signs of settlement go back to the earlier period. Byblos is directly related to the development of Phoenician alphabet, which is in use even now. An interesting thing is that the English word Bible is derived from the name of the town, since Byblos was an important port, through which the papyrus was imported.
比布魯斯也是許多古代文明的發源地。它是古老的腓尼基城市之一，其人類居住史約爲5000年，但城中人類行跡可追溯到更早的時候。比布魯斯與沿用至今的腓尼基字母表有着直接聯繫。其中有趣的是，由於比布魯斯是當時較爲重要的港口之一，紙莎草紙也經由此港進口，英語單詞中的"聖經"竟來源於"比布魯斯"一名。Byblos is a lovely tourist destination these days and it has a lot to offer: ancient citadels and temples, picturesque views overlooking the Mediterranean, antique ruins and the port. Nowadays it's quite modern city with glass buildings and full-chock streets, but you can easily see the touch of antiquity. I like reasonable combination of tradition and sophistication about this city and I'm in love with its ancient heart.
比布魯斯如今成爲了天下游人神往之地，當然其景可嘉。比布魯斯城中可見古老的城堡寺廟，城中高處也可賞地中海如畫美景、古遺蹟和港口全景。現在，比布魯斯也成爲了一座玻璃建築遍地和人潮擁擠的現代化城市，但在這裏人們仍然能感受到比布魯斯的古老風韻。比布魯斯是傳統與高雅的結合體。ns, Greece
2.希臘，雅典
The cradle of Western civilization, Athens is the capital of Greece with the population of about 3 million people. By now it has been inhabited for more than 7,000 years and the design of the city is marked by Ottoman, Byzantine and Roman civilizations. It's a birthplace of outstanding philosophers, writers, dramatists, artists and the classical style that they gave rise to.
西方文明搖籃的雅典是希臘的首都，人口約爲300萬，其人類居住史超過7000年。奧斯曼人、拜占庭人和羅馬人依次在此留下過各自文明的印記。除此以外，雅典還是許多著名哲學家、作家、戲劇家和藝術家的誕生地，古典主義的風潮就是從這裏誕生。Modern Athens is a cosmopolitan city, the cultural, media, educational, political and industrial center of Greece. The historical center of the city is composed of Acropolis ("high city"), a huge hill with the remnants of ancient buildings and Parthenon. The hill has a marvelous view down the city. Since Athens is acknowledged to be the archeological research center, it is full of historical museums, including the National Archaeological Museum, the Byzantine and Christian Museum and the New Acropolis Museum. When visiting Athens, you shouldn't miss the chance to visit the Port of Piraeus, which has been the most important port of the Mediterranean for centuries due to its geo-strategic location.
而現代雅典作爲一個國際都市，是希臘的文化、媒體、教育、政治和工業中心。雅典的歷史中心由衛城（或稱"高處的城市"）組成。所謂衛城是一座遍佈着古建築遺址和帕特農神廟所在的山丘。從衛城往下看去，雅典城的無邊美景盡收眼下。作爲公認的考古研究中心，雅典的歷史博物館可謂不少，其中包括雅典國家考古博物館、拜占庭和基督教博物館以及新衛城博物館。當然，去雅典絕對不能遺漏了比雷埃夫斯港。由於其地緣戰略的位置，比雷埃夫斯港幾個世紀以來都是地中海地區最爲重要的港口。scus, Syria
1.敘利亞，大馬士革
Being the capital of Syria, Damascus is also the largest city of the country, with the population of over 4.5 million people. The history of the city goes back to the 10,000-8,000 BC, though the exact time is still debated; consequently Damascus is recognized as one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Situated between Africa and Asia, the city has an advantageous geographical location at the crossroads of the orient and the occident.
作爲敘利亞的首都，大馬士革同時還是敘利亞最大的城市，人口超過450萬。儘管確切時間未能確定，但大馬士革的歷史要追溯到公元前10000至8000年。因此，大馬士革被認爲是世界上人類聚居歷史最古老的城市之一。地處亞非兩洲之間，還是東西方的十字路口，大馬士革佔據着相當有利的地理位置。From time immemorial, Damascus was a significant cultural, commercial and administrative center. It was a destination of local and overseas traders and craftsmen. The city is marked by several civilizations that had created it: Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine and Islamic. The old-walled city amazes with ancient architecture, narrow alleys, green courtyards and white houses. However, the age-old architecture somewhat contrasts with the flood of tourists who come from all over the world to see this breathtaking place.
自古以來，大馬士革就是重要的文化、經濟、政治中心。不管是本國的還是外來的商人和手工藝人全都集聚於此。希臘文明、羅馬文明、拜占庭文明乃至伊斯蘭文明共同刻畫了大馬士革如今的模樣。在這座被古城牆圍繞起來的城市裏，時光久遠的建築、狹窄的街巷、綠色的院落和白色的房屋隨處可見。而慕名而來的滿街喧鬧遊人似乎又與這古老的城有那麼點格格不入。時光容易催人老。人們從來恨人生苦短，而對這些沉積了百千年歷史的古城，我們卻總心嚮往之。歷史和幾代文明的沉澱爲這些城市增添了獨特的色彩，時光留下的痕跡成爲了它們的榮光。你甚至可以從這座城的古建築、佈局和風景中讀到它的歷史。上面描述的這些僅僅是我所推薦的古城，世界上也還有更多這樣文化名城。不知你是否曾經到過這些城市？翻譯:敖-有沒 審校:煙囪 編輯:旭旭 來源：前十網
