4. Babylon

　　Famous for its "wondrous" hanging gardens， the ancient Mesopotamian city of Babylon had as turbulenta history as its location in present-day Iraq suggests. Everyone from the ancient Assyrians to Alexander the Great wanted to get their hands on this strategiclocation, and it would become the capital for many ruling groups over a period of several thousand years. King Nebuchadnezzar II, creator of the gardens, led the city during its splendid architectural heydayaround 600 BC。

　　巴比伦

　　古巴比伦位于今伊拉克共和国境内。这座美索不达米亚平原孕育出来的城市因其令人惊叹的空中花园而世界闻名。从古亚述人到亚历山大大帝都试图染指这一重要的战略要地。数千年来，它也一直被众多统治者定为首都。大约公元前600年，古巴比伦国王尼布甲尼撒二世占领耶路撒冷，建空中花园，创造了巴比伦在建筑学上的辉煌历史。

　　5.Cuzco

　　All roads in the Incan empire once lead to Cuzco, bustling capital in the Andes Mountains from the early 1400s until its discovery by European explorers in 1532. To retreatfrom the big city, Incan kings would head to their summer home of Machu Picchu further up in the mountains。

　　库斯科

　　库斯科位于秘鲁安第斯山脉。在印加帝国时期，所有的道路都可以通向这里，它曾是印加帝国的君主在夏季的避暑胜地。1532年，欧洲探险者发现了它。

　　6.Tenochtitlan

　　Legend—and bits and pieces of historical fact—indicates that Tenochtitlan was once the world’s biggest and most beautiful city. The capital of the great Aztec empire, which eventually morphed into today's Mexico City, had about 300,000 inhabitants when Spanish conquistadors arrived in 1521. Despite being built atopa lake according to the wishes of an important Aztec deity, ancient engineers made Tenochtitlan as efficient as any city in Europe with a complex system of causeways and canals。

　　特诺奇蒂特兰

　　各种传说和历史资料都表明特诺奇蒂特兰曾是世界上最大、最美丽的城市。特诺奇蒂特兰在历史上曾是伟大的阿兹特克帝国(即现在的墨西哥城)的首都。1521年西班牙征服者到达该地时，这里曾有大约30万人口。尽管传说特诺奇蒂特兰建于一座湖泊之上是因为一位重要的阿兹特克神灵的祝福，古代建筑师为该城建造的复杂的堤道和排水系统让它和欧洲任何一座先进的城市媲美。