永遠的異鄉人－－The Eternal Outsider

現今被視為浪漫化身的花都巴黎，過去也曾遭受大小戰爭、內戰的蹂躪。城中許多角落都有著鮮血淋漓的往昔。

協和廣場（Place de la Concorde）便是其中之一。

Despite its image as the most romantic city in the world, Paris had suffered from numerous wounds, largely contributed by countless wars and civil wars. It is very likely that every corner in the city has witnessed some cruelty in the past.

The Place de la Concorde definitely is one of them.

在協和廣場最顯而易見的地標，是聳立在中央的埃及尖塔。這個尖塔原位於埃及路克索神殿(Temple of Luxor)入口處，十九世紀時，由埃及掌權者送給法國，其後便佇立於協和廣場。

The landmark of the Place de la Concorde is, no doubt, the Egyptian obelisk placed at the center. The obelisk was once the mark of entrance of the Temple of Luxor in Egypt. In the 19th century, it was gifted to France by the then Egyptian viceroy, and has been standing at the Place de la Concorde ever since.

大抵是因為這是正港埃及來的地標，在我們造訪協和廣場時，底下有位裝扮成木乃伊的街頭藝人站在豔陽下，等待來往行旅的人們打點賞金。

Due to its Egyptian origin, when we visited the Place de la Concorde, a street artist disguised himself/herself as a mummy standing right beside the obelisk waiting for passers-by to show him/her some money!

除了這個尖塔外，協和廣場上的兩座噴泉亦被視為法國最具代表性的噴泉之一。兩座噴泉，各別象徵河川與海洋，造型上受羅馬噴泉設計的影響極深。

Apart from the obelisk, the two fountains at the Place de la Concorde are also seen as two of the most important fountains in France. Each representing rivers and oceans, the architectural style of the two fountains is very much influenced by the fountains in Rome.

儘管取名為協和廣場，協和廣場的過去一點也不協和。法國大革命期間，此處被稱為革命廣場，被推翻的王儲路易十六和他性喜舖張的皇后瑪麗安東尼特，都在此處以斷頭台行刑。在1793年到1795年間，協和廣場上一共以斷頭台處刑了1344人。也因此，最後此處被命名為協和廣場，目的在於希望從這段血腥的歷史中重生，求取和平和諧。

Even though its modern name implies "friendship" and "harmony", the history of the Place de la Concorde is far from harmony. During the French Revolution, it was called Place de la Revolution. The overthrown king, Louis XVI, and his extravagant queen, Marie-Antoinette, were beheaded here along with 1342 more people during 1793 and 1795. Therefore, the square was later renamed as the Place de la Concorde, in hope that through such a bloody past, eventually people find the peace and harmony.