[Roppongi 3-chome, Tokyo — Japan—Taiwan Exchange Association]
It had never been all that well known, but Taiwan was not the name of a country but was rather the name of the island. The country was called the Republic of Sina. After World War II, a civil war had broken out in Sina, and the government of the Republic of Sina was forced to flee to Taiwan. The Oriental Republic of Sina—or the People’s Republic of Sina—had then pressured the UN to remove the Republic of Sina from the UN, thus securing its own place in the international community. They had gone through their allies—Albanya, in particular, had spearheaded the affair—and had succeeded in passing the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758—the Albanya Resolution for short—which had effectively removed Taiwan’s representatives from the UN.
It was said that many in Taiwan held great sympathy for Japan, and that was one of the reasons that led to the Albanya Resolution. Japan had strongly opposed Taiwan’s expulsion from the UN, of course, and had gone through every possible democratic channel to prevent it.
In the end, the resolution had passed. Taiwan had been removed, and a dark stain remained on the recent history of diplomacy in Japan.
Japan’s support for Taiwan even ended up influencing the Japan-Sina joint communiqué which normalized Japan’s diplomatic relations with the Oriental Republic of Sina. As part of normalizing relations, the Oriental Republic of Sina had requested that Japan cut all ties with Taiwan. This demand had not been added in the joint communiqué, but the Japanese Foreign Minister at the time had declared that “the treaty between Taiwan and Japan had lost its significance and should end.” Thus ended Japan and Taiwan’s official relationship.
However, as a result of this vague statement—rather characteristic of Japan—both countries put together non-governmental organizations, and resumed working-level relationships, though political relationships were out of the question. As such, the relationship between Taiwan and Japan was rather peculiar. This diplomatic success of Japan was soon imitated by other countries, such as Gamerica, and non-official but nonetheless very real diplomatic links were formed between Taiwan and most countries.
“I’ve been to Taiwan twice in my life,” I started. “The climate is nice, the people are cheerful, and the food is incredibly good. On top of that, many Taiwanese have a soft spot for Japan, and they usually treat us very amicably, as long as we’re polite and mind our manners.”
“I like Taiwanese food too,” Akira said. “I had some great Taiwanese ramen in Nagoya.”
“Hmm... You know that dish has nothing to do with actual Taiwanese food, right? Strangely enough, they call it Nagoya ramen over there.”
Akira looked utterly surprised by what I had just told him as we entered the building of the Japan—Taiwan Exchange Association in Roppongi. No visa was needed to visit Taiwan as a tourist, but this trip was for work. We didn’t know exactly when we’d be able to return to Japan, so we needed to get a visa first. As for my driver’s license, I had to go through the JAF—Japan Automobile Federation—and apply for a translated version. After that, I’d be free to drive in Taiwan with my Japanese license.
“Tourists don’t need visas, do they, Ezoe-shi? Why do we need to get one?”
Mutsuo and the other members of the IT department seemed puzzled. Come on, guys. You’re also here to work!
“We’re all going there to clear a dungeon. We obviously need a visa. It’s our first time going on a business trip abroad, so you’re coming with us too. There are tons of things to check and analyze—how big the dungeon is, how long monsters take to respawn, the drop rates, whether the status windows are different or not...” I explained.
“Then we need to make sure we have good enough internet to work. Wait, do they have Wi-Fi in Taiwan?”
Mutsuo and his pals ran off to confirm all this with the staff of the Japan—Taiwan Exchange Association. The lady at the front desk forced a smile as she explained various things about Taiwan to them. If memory served me right, the internet coverage in Taiwan was even better than in Japan. Apparently, Mutsuo and the others were more worried about security aspects, though. They weren’t fond of the idea of having to go through a foreign provider and decided to use a Japanese operator, even though we were in Taiwan.
“Ezoe-shi, I took the chance to ask for you, and bringing electronic cigarettes inside the country is forbidden. Be careful.”
Taiwan was a country where few people smoked in the first place and regulations on cigarettes were much stricter. Both electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products were forbidden. Well, I only smoked regular cigarettes, so I didn’t care either way. Just to be safe, I intended to bring several portable ashtrays, though.