in Tomatlan, which is not at all in Baja California but a hundred kilometres south of Puerto Vallarta, in the state of Jalisco, nearly level with Mexico City. They had been travelling non-stop for forty-one hours. "We work hard," Mr. Okamoto wrote.
He and Mr. Chiba spoke with Piscine Molitor Patel, in English, for close to three hours, taping the conversation. What follows are excerpts from the verbatim transcript. I am grateful to Mr. Okamoto for having made available to me a copy of the tape and of his final report. For the sake of clarity I have indicated who is speaking when it is not immediately apparent. Portions printed in a different font were spoken in Japanese, which I had translated.
CHAPTER 96
"Hello, Mr. Patel. My name is Tomohiro Okamoto. I am from the Maritime Department in the Japanese Ministry of Transport. This is my assistant, Atsuro Chiba. We have come to see you about the sinking of the ship Tsimtsum, of which you were a passenger. Would it be possible to talk to you now?"
"Yes, of course."
"Thank you. It is very kind of you. <translation>Now, Atsuro-kun, you're new at this, so pay attention and see to learn."
"Yes, Okamoto-san."
"Is the tape recorder on?"
"Yes it is."
"Good. Oh I'm so tired! For the record, today is February 19th, 1978. Case file number 250663, concerning the disappearance of the cargo ship Tsimtsum.</translation> Are you comfortable, Mr. Patel?"
"Yes, I am. Thank you. And you?"
"We are very comfortable."
"You've come all the way from Tokyo?"
"We were in Long Beach, California. We drove down."
"Did you have a good trip?"
"We had a wonderful trip. It was a beautiful drive."
"I had a terrible trip."
"Yes, we spoke to the police before coming here and we saw the lifeboat."
"I'm a little hungry."
"Would you like a cookie?"
"Oh, yes!"
"Here you go."
"Thank you!"
"You're welcome. It's only a cookie. Now, Mr. Patel, we were wondering if you could tell us what happened to you, with as much detail as possible."
"Yes. I'd be happy to."
CHAPTER 97
The story.
CHAPTER 98
Mr. Okamoto: "Very interesting."
Mr. Chiba: "What a story."
<translation>"He thinks we're fools.</translation> Mr. Patel, we'll take a little break and then we'll come back, yes?"
"That's fine. I'd like another cookie."
"Yes, of course."
Mr. Chiba: <translation>"He's already had plenty and most he hasn't even eaten. They're right there beneath his bedsheet."
"Just give him another one. We kave to humour him.</translation> We'll be back in a few minutes."
CHAPTER 99
Mr. Okamoto: "Mr. Patel, we don't believe your story."
"Sorry—these cookies are good but they tend to crumble. I'm amazed. Why not?"
"It doesn't hold up."
"What do you mean?"
"Bananas don't float."
"I'm sorry?"
"You said the orangutan came floating on an island of bananas."
"That's right."
"Bananas don't float."
"Yes, they do."
"They're too heavy."
"No, they're not. Here, try for yourself. I have two bananas right here."
Mr. Chiba: <translation>"Where did those come from? What else does he have under his bedsheet?"
Mr. Okamoto: "Damn it.</translation> No, that's all right."
"There's a sink over there."
"That's fine."
"I insist. Fill that sink with water, drop these bananas in, and we'll see who's right."
"We'd like to move on."
"I absolutely insist."
[Silence]
Mr. Chiba: <translation>"What do we do?"
Mr. Okamoto: "I feel this is going to be another very long day."</translation>
[Sound of a chair being pushed back. Distant sound of water gushing out of a tap]
Pi Patel: "What's happening? I can't see from here."
Mr. Okamoto [distantly]: "I'm filling the sink."
"Have you put the bananas in yet?"
[Distantly] "No."
"And now?"
[Distantly] "They're in."
"And?"
[Silence]
Mr. Chiba: <translation>"Are they floating?"
[Distantly] "Tkey're floating."</translation>
"So, are they floating?"
[Distantly] "They're floating."
"What did I tell you?"
Mr. Okamoto: "Yes, yes. But it would take a lot of bananas to hold up an orangutan."
"It did. There was close to a ton. It still makes me sick when I think of all those bananas floating away and going to waste when they were mine for the picking."
"It's a pity. Now, about—"
"Could I have my bananas back, please?"
Mr. Chiba: <translation>"I'll get them."
[Sound of a chair being pushed back]
[Distantly] "Look at that. They really do float."</translation> Mr. Okamoto: "What about this algae island you say you came upon?"
Mr. Chiba: "Here are your bananas."
Pi Patel: "Thank you. Yes?"
"I'm sorry to say it so bluntly, we don't mean to hurt your feelings, but you don't really expect us to believe you, do you? Carnivorous trees? A fish-eating algae that produces fresh water? Tree-dwelling aquatic rodents? These things don't exist."
"Only because you've never seen them."
"That's right. We believe what we see."
"So did Columbus. What do you do when you're in the dark?"
"Your island is botanically impossible."
"Said the fly just before landing in the Venus flytrap."
"Why has no one else come upon it?"
"It's a big ocean crossed by busy ships. I went slowly, observing much."
"No scientist would believe you."
"These would be the same who dismissed Copernicus and Darwin. Have scientists finished coming upon new plants? In the Amazon basin, for example?"
"Not plants that contradict the laws of nature."
"Which you know through and through?"
"Well enough to know the possible from the impossible."
Mr. Chiba: "I have an uncle who knows a lot about botany. He lives in the country near Hita-Gun. He's a bonsai master."
Pi Patel: "A what?"
"A bonsai master. You know, bonsai are little trees."
"You mean shrubs."
"No, I mean trees. Bonsai are little trees. They are less than two feet tall. You can carry them in your arms. They can be very old. My uncle has one that is over three hundred years old."
"Three-hundred-year-old trees that are two feet tall that you can carry in your arms?"
"Yes. They're very delicate. They need a lot of attention."
"Whoever heard of such trees? They're botanically impossible."
"But I assure you they exist, Mr. Patel. My uncle—"
"I believe what I see."
Mr. Okamoto: "Just a moment, please. <translation>Atsuro, with all due respect for your uncle who lives in the country near Hita-Gun, we're not here to talk idly about botany."
"I'm just trying to help."
"Do your uncle's bonsai eat meat?"
"I don't think so."
"Have you ever been bitten by one of his bonsai?"
"No."
"In that case, your uncle's bonsai are not helping us.</translation> Where were we?"
Pi Patel: "With the tall, full-sized trees firmly rooted to the ground I was telling you about."
"Let us put them aside for now."
"It might be hard. I never tried pulling them out and carrying them."
"You're a funny man, Mr. Patel. Ha! Ha! Ha!"
Pi Patel: "Ha! Ha! Ha!"
Mr. Chiba: "Ha! Ha! Ha! <translation>It wasn't that funny."
Mr. Okamoto: "Just keep laughing.</translation> Ha! Ha! Ha!"
Mr. Chiba: "Ha! Ha! Ha!"
Mr. Okamoto: "Now about the tiger, we're not sure about it either."
"What do you mean?"
"We have difficulty believing it."
"It's an incredible story."
"Precisely."
"I don't know how I survived."
"Clearly it was a strain."
"I'll have another cookie."
"There are none left."
"What's in that bag?"
"Nothing."
"Can I see?"
Mr. Chiba: <translation>"There goes our lunch."</translation> Mr. Okamoto: "Getting back to the tiger..."
Pi Patel: "Terrible business. Delicious sandwiches."
Mr. Okamoto: "Yes, they look good."
Mr. Chiba: <translation>"I'm hungry."</translation>
"Not a trace of it has been found. That's a bit hard to believe, isn't it? There are no tigers in the Americas. If there were a wild tiger out there, don't you think the police would have heard about it by now?"
"I should tell you about the black panther that escaped from the Zurich Zoo in the middle of winter."
"Mr. Patel, a tiger is an incredibly dangerous wild animal. How could you survive in a lifeboat with one? It's—"