Posted: December 8, 2021
As the plane soared into the air, so did my heart inside my chest. In only a few hours, I would be meeting a special someone.
Although I had a marvelous time in San Francisco meeting big-city folks who were surprisingly open and kindhearted and learning more about my own gender identity, I was ready to move on.
If it wasn’t for that special someone, I would have never decided on a whim to embark my first solo travel trip in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Hold on, Jersey City? Where’s that? Why take a solo trip there? What’s so interesting about New Jersey? Why not take the traditional thrilling solo trip route in Western Europe or something? you might ask.
That’s the point though. I was on my way to meet a penguin. But not just any ol’ friendless aquatic bird. I was about to meet up with my friend, Athena, who happened to live in Jersey City. I wanted to not only meet in the human flesh an online gamer friend that I’ve known since we were 14 years old, but to also tap into an exclusive travel network, one that is online and international.
I am a part of the Club Penguin community, based on the beloved and popular online game, Club Penguin, which ran from 2005-2017. There is so much love between our friends in the community that this online society did not die with the game. We are still on Twitter and Discord striking up conversations. And now that we are adults, those conversations often entail the places in which we live.
A rewarding benefit of being in this network is that I could unlock travel destinations and experiences that I would’ve been totally oblivious to if it weren’t for my online gamer friends who lived in various places around the world. After all, online communities are not limited to location. In addition to being my good friends, they can be my local guides who are the experts of their hometown. They could very well be living in obscure locations with a hidden potential for rich, meaningful travel experiences. For many of these folks, they were proud to represent their home. Each person lives a different life from mine, and I want to try a piece of theirs.
For the uninitiated, Jersey City lies just across the Hudson River from New York City. It’s a lovely town connected to NYC via underground trains and almost no tourists go there; just the people who live in this New Jersey enclave.
And so, over the next several weeks, I would become an unofficial Jersey City protégé, thanks to Athena’s desire to help me learn more about the town she spent all her life in. Whether she could hit the streets with me or could only play virtual tour guide through WhatsApp, I learned so much about Jersey City through the eyes of a proud local. I knew about its special places such as the ginormous Colgate Clock, the multicultural fabric of its population — Athena was one of the city’s many Filipino Americans, and even citywide opinions such as New York City’s fame unfairly taking away attention from Jersey City.
Getting Athena’s insider tips and tricks gave Jersey City more character and charm that left a deep impression on me months after the trip’s end. Her enthusiasm for her home infected me. Versus if I explored Jersey City on my own, I wouldn’t have been as interested in the place. I would be just like any other out-of-towner who could only experience Jersey City on the surface.
But the more fundamental discovery is not Jersey City’s places and cultures, but the Jersey City name alone. If I had never made a good friend online, I might have never known about Jersey City’s existence, much less have given it a chance. Like almost everybody else, if I was in the area, I would have spent all my time in nearby New York City, a world-famous destination.
Athena made Jersey City available to me. It’s as if Jersey City is a treasure exclusively for me thanks to my membership in the international online community of penguins.
I ended up enjoying this treasure more than NYC. I instinctively have a softness for underdog locations because to me, travel is way more fun when you’re surrounded by locals who can genuinely help you immerse into their culture and lifestyle.
The penguin community has changed the way I travel. Using my mental map of locations where they live, I can come up with plenty of ideas for my next travels.
Sometimes, I have another reason to visit a destination, but still can’t help but wonder if any penguins live in the area. Because I will go to Memphis for TravelCon 2022, I already have some potential penguins in mind whom I could visit in Tennessee and neighboring states.
Other times, the penguins ultimately determine where I will book my next flight. My main travel destinations are their homes. If it weren’t for my online friend Dialga, I wouldn’t have ever imagined myself visiting the obscure German village, Saltzgitter because I wouldn’t have been aware of its existence.
But now, I can picture myself in the future touring her area, especially during Braunschweig’s historical Christmas markets. I didn’t care much for European Christmas markets, but it was only because of our chatty online conversations and fun-filled podcast that I have become fascinated by them. Her perspective not only made me aware of her home, but made me shove it to the top of my must-see places. As the Christmas season is getting hyped up, I find myself caught in dreams of strolling through markets, bundled up in a warm coat.
The long hours in my bedroom hunched over my glowing laptop screen with online friends from Club Penguin have translated into me ditching my bedroom for my next trips. Those friends would be my ticket to underrated locations with their local flair.
I may not be in travel forums or Facebook groups. But that’s okay. I have a worldwide network of penguins.
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Blissfully Belonging in Jersey City (FYI: It’s the Most Culturally Diverse City in the US)