The Circle and the Morning Boat

The Ring of Brodgar stands between two lochs. The stones make a circle about one hundred and four metres across. People built it about four thousand years ago.

Ring of Brodgar ipo kati ya maziwa mawili. Mawe hufanya duara lenye upana wa mita mia moja na nne. Watu waliijenga miaka elfu nne iliyopita.

There were around sixty stones once. Thirty-six are standing now. Polly walked around the outside. Nobody wrote down why the circle is there.

Zamani kulikuwa na mawe karibu sitini. Sasa yamesimama thelathini na sita. Polly akazunguka nje. Hakuna aliyeandika kwa nini duara lipo hapo.

Then it was time to leave. At the harbour office there was a shag behind a counter. "What time does the ferry leave?" Polly asked. "How much does this cost?" Then she said, "I would like to buy a ticket, please."

Kisha ikafika saa ya kuondoka. Ofisini mwa bandari kulikuwa na ndege nyuma ya kaunta. "Kivuko kinaondoka saa ngapi?" Polly akauliza. "Hii inagharimu kiasi gani?" Kisha akasema, "Ningependa kununua tikiti, tafadhali."

"How long does the crossing take?" she asked last. In the morning the boat went out past the low headland. The islands went down behind it, one by one.

"Safari ya kuvuka inachukua muda gani?" akauliza mwisho. Asubuhi meli ikatoka ikipita rasi fupi. Visiwa vikazama nyuma yake, kimoja baada ya kingine.