they are red, white, and blue, the same colors as our own flag, but their flags have only three stripes and the stripes are up and down, 法国国旗有红、白和蓝三种颜色，和美国国旗一样，但是他们的国旗只有三个简单的竖条并列在一起，

not from side to side, and the colors are backward—blue, white, red, instead of red, white, blue. 三个竖条的颜色顺序从左到右是——蓝、白、红，而不是红、白、蓝。

The street signs and signs on the buildings are in a different language, 街道的标牌和建筑物的招牌上写着法语，不是英语，

the people are talking a different language, and of course the money is different too. It is called “francs.” 人们说着法语，也不是英语，当然用的钱也和我们不一样，叫做“法郎”。

You have probably heard some one say, “You look like your father or mother,” 你也许听人说过：“你长得像你爸爸（或妈妈）。”

but they don’t say that your father or mother looks like you. 但他们不会说你爸爸或妈妈长得像你。

Well, up the River Seine is the capital and largest city of France, spelled “Paris,” but called “Paree” by the French people. 塞纳河上游有法国的首都，也是法国最大的城市，拼写是“Paris”，但法国人叫它“巴黎”。

Some call it the most beautiful city . 有人说巴黎是世界上最美丽的城市。

People often say some other very beautiful city looks “like Paris,” but they never say Paris looks like any other city. 人们常说其他某个美丽的城市看起来“就像巴黎”，但他们从不说巴黎像其他城市。

London is up a river too, but it is only a short way and quite large ships can get up to London. 伦敦也位于一条河的上游，但离海很近，大型船只都可以驶到伦敦。

But Paris is a long distance up the Seine, and the river is too shallow and too narrow for large steamships to go up so far, 但巴黎在塞纳河上游很远的地方，河水很浅，河道狭窄，大轮船根本驶不到那么远的地方，

although smaller boats can do so. 不过小船倒可以。

The Seine runs straight through Paris, or rather I should say it runs crooked through Paris, for it curves as it passes through. 塞纳河直接流经巴黎，确切地说塞纳河是弯弯曲曲地流经巴黎，因为在这段流程，河道是弯曲的。

On a small island in the river is a great church—a cathedral, built to the Virgin Mary, whom the French call Notre Dame, which means Our Lady. 在塞纳河的一个小岛上有座大教堂，是为供奉圣母玛丽亚而建的，法国人称她“诺特拉戴姆”，意思是“我们的女士”。

Notre Dame was built many hundreds of years ago of stone and stained glass, 巴黎圣母院建于好几百年前，是用石头和彩色玻璃建造的，

with two towers in front and a thin spire in the center “like a finger pointing to heaven.” 教堂前面有两个塔，教堂中央有一个细长的塔尖顶，就像“一根指向天空的手指”。

Long props made of stone hold up the roof. 长长的石柱支撑起屋顶。

They are called flying buttresses, and if these props were taken away the roof would tumble down. 这些柱子叫做扶拱垛，如果柱子被拿走，屋顶就会倒塌。

Around on the edge of the roof of Notre Dame are perched strange animals made of stone. 在巴黎圣母院屋顶边缘的四周“栖息”着奇怪的石头动物。

They are hideous creatures, different from any real animals you have ever seen or heard of, part bird, part beast, part devil. 它们都是些很丑陋的动物，跟你见过或听说过的任何普通动物都不一样，像鸟，像兽，又像魔鬼。

They are called “gargoyles,” 这些东西叫做“怪兽状滴水嘴”，

and they were made as hideous as possible and put there on the edge of the roof because it was thought they would scare away evil spirits from the church. 它们的样子被造得尽可能丑陋可怕，放在屋顶的边缘，因为据信它们能把恶鬼从教堂吓跑。