Surprisingly enough, Zhang was in favor of the idea.
>>Very interesting. There aren't many countries like that, and the coin would be a souvenir to commemorate our gathering.
>>If we throw them into a pond maybe they'll feed the fish.
A little joke; I was feeling good. I had to admit, I'd done pretty well to come up with a suggestion derived from Zhang's mystery coin puzzle. Scott had put us on hold, however. Just when it seemed he'd been silent for a long while, he suddenly declared that, unfortunately, it was impossible to go to the island. He continued,
>>Both of you, please read the English on the official website. It says it's an imaginary island, a fictional creation.
The website was entirely in English, and after copying down the address to pass along to the other two, all I'd read had been the description on the Japanese-language site. Consequently, I missed a crucial point. Zhang replied.
>>You're right. It's clearly stated right at the beginning.
I looked at the section Zhang was referring to. Sure enough, there were the words, "imaginary island." Even with my poor English I understood that this meant it was a made-up island.
>>It's a very appealing island. Too bad the world doesn't have such a place.
It was Scott who said this, but I was the one with real regrets. I had suggested the island in the firm belief that it actually existed. It was my fault for not taking the trouble to read the English text; in the end, I hadn't done too well at all. Zhang piled it on.
>>Take a good look at the Japanese site, Shota. If you follow the link at the bottom, they give you the true story.
I opened the link that Zhang was referring to and found that the creator of the coin website had written a postscript. He had originally included a description of the island on his website, thinking that it was an actual place, but someone who'd read the description had informed him of the truth.
The Roger coin had actually been created not by the government of New Island but by an American artist named Lee Mothes. He'd been painting landscapes from an imaginary land and had been asked which country he was painting so many times that he decided to invent a country to go with the landscapes. He'd also invented a history and culture for the country and created a flag, maps, and a national currency. The Roger coin had been skillfully minted, and collectors began trading it, mistaking it for real money. This had given rise to the misimpression that New Island actually existed.
I had seen a website describing that misunderstanding and come away believing that the Commonwealth of New Island really existed. I couldn't believe I'd been such an idiot; I sat in front of my computer screen with my face burning. Scott tried to console me.
>>Don't worry about it. You didn't notice because you only had half an hour, right? Let's resume the discussion about where to meet next week.
That seemed best, since it didn't look as though we were going to come up with a good idea that night. I'd lost interest in playing chess, and I logged off while Scott and Zhang were playing each other. Zhang might have been surfing the Internet while he was playing chess, because just before I logged off he said,
>>Looks like you can buy a Roger coin over the Net. Maybe I'll order one.
At first I thought this was more sarcasm, but it was probably just Zhang's way of trying to make me feel better. That night, that's what I wanted to believe.
***
The next week Zhang told us something that sounded crazy.
>>I found the place you could get to New Island from.
>>What?
What was he talking about? It was an imaginary island—you couldn't get there from anywhere. Scott replied.
>>Are you by any chance talking about the fact that people can purchase New Island citizenship?
Apparently, anyone who bought a New Island residency package could become a citizen and get a deed to some land there. Although it was an imaginary island, the creator and his collaborators had fashioned it into a sort of interactive work of art. But that's what not Zhang was talking about.
>>Shota, you said there was regular boat service to New Island from the port of Fremantle, right? I checked up on that and found a blog with pictures of Fremantle's harbor. >>Yeah, well, there really is a Fremantle, but . .
But the place I'd been hoping to get to from Fremantle didn't exist. Zhang gave us the address of the blog, but looking at pictures of the harbor seemed pointless.
>>Nowadays Fremantle port doesn't have a boarding place for the boat to New Island, but in the old days the port seems to have been in a slightly different location. A little ways away there's a sign that says "The Old Port." That's what I want you to look at.
Giving in, I looked up the blog. Sure enough, there, with the blue ocean in the background, was a sign with something printed on it in English.
>>I guess it's supposed to be a monument to the old harbor. Looks more like a sign stuck in the sand.
>>Right. A signpost. Just like in my mystery coin puzzle, down to that very detail.
Scott replied.
>>Oh, right. And it says those buildings around the harbor were built in the nineteenth century.
Zhang went on.
>>Exactly. It means that's the place where boats departed from the old harbor for New Island.
>>Oh, I get it.
That's why he'd called it the place you could—not can—get to New Island from. Maybe it was possible, by projecting the imaginary island onto history, to imagine that regular boat service departed from this place in the past. Zhang was being unusually talkative.
>>You can't see the Indian Ocean from the harbor anymore, only from the beach. That's why it's just right: a beach facing nothing but the sea and sky is the perfect point of departure for an imaginary island, right?
Scott answered.
>>The other side of the Indian Ocean might be the birthplace of chess. That signboard expands your imagination, doesn't it. And I think I've figured out what Eric's next suggestion will be.
>>Go ahead, tell us.
>>Gladly. You want us to meet at the sign.
>>That's right.
Zhang's succinct reply was followed by a telling silence. They both seemed to be waiting for an answer from me.
>>Definitely sounds interesting.
That was the short answer. As I composed the rest I realized I was wearing a big grin.
>>This might just be the perfect meeting place.
Edited by Japan Echo Inc.