Around the world, paying only Bitcoins

Since January, 28-year-old freelance programmer Felix Weiss Luxembourg travels around the world, paying only around Bitcoin, and he has become accustomed to the fact that it is viewed as a madman when it comes to paying the bills.





Most sellers in the stores, bartenders and tour operators, with whom he had met, had never even heard of this virtual currency. But precisely for such meetings, and Weiss wanted. Wherever he was, he tries to get in touch with ordinary people, not enlightened geeks who are already in the know.

Bitcoin - is the most impressive, the global socio-economic experiment unfolding in real time, - Weiss said - I believe in what I do. blockquote> As proof of its commitment to this cryptocurrency which 6 years old, Weiss moved all their savings into bitcoins and scissor his bank card. He still holds the two halves of a credit card in a clear plastic envelope - to show the doubters.

According to his observations, every time he starts to convince someone to accept bitcoins as payment, a small crowd gathered around the curious. If successful, he pulls out his self-image and makes a monopod. In the 14 countries in which it currently has visited, Weiss had to make dozens of photos depicting people first used bitcoins, they are holding smart phones, which are displayed on the screens of their first transaction.
Potential advantages of Bitcoin for avid travelers obvious: bitcoin payments are made instantly, without additional conversion and transfer commission.

Weiss plans to visit 21 countries by the end of 2015 that will embody the symbolic 21 million bitcoins that someday, he is convinced, will become a world currency.

In his travels, Weiss follows three basic rules: use only bitcoins, if you pay them for housing, food and travel. Never use a debit or credit cards and ATMs. Sometimes he uses a small pouch in the local currency, but only if he was able to exchange this money for bitcoins from local residents.

At the moment, he had time to visit several European countries, Turkey, Israel and Ukraine. To book tickets and hotels, he uses the services of only those companies that accept cryptocurrency such as CheapAir and Expedia.com .

In his blog, Bitcoin-traveller Weiss describes a number of interesting meetings and adventures that brought him bitcoin journey. For example, Weiss describes the delight guide in Haifa, which he decided to leave the tip in Bitcoin. To do this, the guide had to download to your mobile bitcoin wallet, then Weiss with your own phone QR-code scanned purse and fractions of a second on the new account will appear in Bitcoin amount equal to 30 shekels. Then Weiss opened a map of Tel Aviv on the Coinmap.org and showed her the place where these coins can be use. Guides took this step as a magic act.

In other countries, Weiss Bitcoin paying for scuba diving, paragliding, and jumping rope. Of course, not always successfully evolved his stay, which is almost always been associated with the degree of prevalence cryptocurrency in a particular country. Not always he managed to persuade local residents to accept as payment for "virtual" money. For example, a few days in Bulgaria, Varna, all he managed to get out of the food - it was complex priotelnyh breakfast in the restaurant. However, in Budapest and Berlin, almost everywhere he could find a place where we took bitcoins. In May, Turkey Weiss had two days of fasting, but then, with the help of a friend, he still persuaded the owners of the pizzeria to take payment bitcoins, and then together they celebrated "Day of Bitcoin-pizza" - the anniversary of the first in the world famous bitcoin transactions however, a two-day delay.

A few weeks ago, Weiss flew to Hong Kong, where he began an Asian chapter of his travels, and in the fall, he plans to travel to Latin America, where the prevalence of Bitcoin is already quite high, due to galloping inflation. In 65% of the local population does not have bank accounts, but has many smart phones, which greatly simplifies the way bitcoin technology for mass use, says Sebastian Serrano, founder, BitPagos now the largest Argentine companies bitcoin.

His way Weiss plans to finalize in Berlin, where he began his journey, and where it plans to launch its own bitcoin startup - "to make bitcoins affordable and convenient." Despite all the hardships of wandering, Weiss did not think to despair: "Now that I know that, at least in the 14 countries of the world can live in the bitcoins, go back to the boring old system, I do not want to!", - He said.





Source: geektimes.ru/company/hashflare/blog/261044/

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