Meeting Fellow Remote Workers in Makassar: Marclub Onboarding & Game Day
My experience attending the Makassar Remote Club onboarding and game day at Pandora Board Game Library, and why communities like this matter for remote workers.
This is my personal account of attending the Makassar Remote Club (Marclub) event on April 5, 2026 at Pandora Board Game Library, Jalan Serigala, Makassar.
I have been working remotely for over six years. Since 2020, every job I have had has come from overseas: Estonia, Singapore, London, Dubai. Every day I open my laptop, join meetings with colleagues across multiple time zones, then close the laptop and go back to being an ordinary person in Makassar.
The paradox is this: the more global my work becomes, the more locally isolated I feel. In Makassar, there are not many people I can talk to about the challenges of remote work: clashing time zones, cross-cultural communication, or how to stay productive without a physical office. That is why when I heard about a community called Makassar Remote Club, I was immediately interested. I started joining their WFC events last year, around the second or third meetup, at Squid Coffee on Jalan Topaz.
Onboarding: Finally Putting Names to Faces
Sunday, April 5, 2026, 1:00 PM. Before heading to Pandora, I dropped off my wife, Hikmah, at Azka salon. I brought our daughter Najma straight to Pandora Board Game Library on Jalan Serigala. Thankfully, Najma was not fussy at all and actually enjoyed the food and drinks there.
The atmosphere was different from the usual WFC (Work From Cafe) sessions. We were not there to work silently at the same table. We were there to actually get to know each other.
The introduction session was the highlight. Until that point, we only knew each other through usernames and profile pictures. That day, for the first time, there were faces behind those names. Nine people showed up: Fahmi, Putri, Jabal, Ahmad, Yusuf, Sidik, Achan, Yani, and myself. Each of us had a different story about how we got into remote work.
Board Games: An Effective Icebreaker
After the formal session, we played Seven Flip, a card game that forces your brain to calculate quickly to flip numbers for maximum points. Sidik won convincingly with a score above 230. Achan earned a special distinction for getting frozen four times. We all laughed.
Then came DiXit, a more relaxed game that requires imagination. Players guess cards based on sometimes absurd clues from opponents. This is where you see how each person's mind works. Sidik won again.
Board games turned out to be an effective way to break the ice. Within minutes, people who were initially awkward were already teasing each other and laughing together.
Planning Session: More Than Just Hanging Out
The final and most important session was the discussion of the community's future plans. This is what earned my respect for Marclub. They refuse to be a community that just hangs out without direction.
Some of the ideas discussed:
- Official website, already live at wfcmakassar.com
- Engaging partners to expand reach
- Branding and content that is relatable, so more remote workers in Makassar learn that this community exists
I offered to help with what I know best: SEO and content strategy. If this community wants to be found by other remote workers in Makassar and beyond, a strong digital presence is not optional, it is essential.
Why This Community Matters
Remote work is not just about flexibility and location independence. There is a side that is rarely discussed: professional loneliness. When you have no colleagues to grab lunch with, no casual conversations by the coffee machine, and all your interactions happen through a screen, it wears on you over time.
Makassar Remote Club fills that gap. Not by forcing people to constantly meet, but by providing a space for those who need connections with fellow remote workers. Events like this prove that you can work for a company on the other side of the world and still have a community in your own city.
Hikmah joined us at Pandora around Asar, after she finished at the salon. The event wrapped up around 5:30 PM. Before heading home, a group photo was mandatory.
We left carrying not just memories of the games, but a renewed commitment to building this community together.
Makassar Remote Club can be found at wfcmakassar.com.