The Circle and the Morning Boat

The Ring of Brodgar sits on a narrow strip of land between two lochs. The stones stand in a circle about one hundred and four metres across. A ditch was cut around it into solid rock. It was built between four and four and a half thousand years ago. It is part of a world heritage site.

Ring of Brodgar berdiri di jalur tanah sempit di antara dua danau. Batu-batunya berdiri dalam lingkaran berdiameter sekitar seratus empat meter. Sebuah parit dipahat mengelilinginya ke dalam batuan padat. Lingkaran ini dibangun antara empat ribu dan empat ribu lima ratus tahun yang lalu. Tempat ini bagian dari situs warisan dunia.

There were around sixty stones once. Thirty-six are standing now. The gaps are as much of the shape as the stones are. Polly walked around the outside of the ring, with heather to her knees and the light going flat across the water. Nothing about it was arranged for a visitor.

Dulu ada sekitar enam puluh batu. Sekarang tiga puluh enam masih berdiri. Celah-celahnya sama pentingnya bagi bentuk lingkaran itu seperti batu-batunya. Polly berjalan mengelilingi bagian luar lingkaran, dengan semak heather setinggi lutut dan cahaya yang jatuh datar di atas air. Tidak ada bagiannya yang ditata untuk pengunjung.

Then came the ordinary business of leaving. At the harbour office there was a shag behind a counter. "What time does the ferry leave?" Polly asked. "How much does this cost?" She looked at the printed sheet with him. "I would like to buy a ticket, please."

Lalu datang urusan biasa untuk pergi. Di kantor pelabuhan ada seekor burung pecuk di balik meja. "Jam berapa feri berangkat?" tanya Polly. "Berapa harganya?" Ia melihat daftar tercetak itu bersama burung pecuk. "Saya ingin membeli satu tiket."

"How long does the crossing take?" she asked last. She put the ticket away. In the morning the boat went out past the same low headland, and the islands went down behind it one by one.

"Berapa lama penyeberangannya?" tanyanya terakhir. Ia menyimpan tiketnya. Pagi harinya kapal itu keluar melewati tanjung rendah yang sama, dan pulau-pulau itu tenggelam di belakangnya satu per satu.