When you are excited about something, you want to share it with someone: a friend, a parent, a partner, a spouse. In my case, it was my wife, Anuja, then girlfriend, who had to endure my conversations about bitcoin. “Hey, babe, look what I learned today.” “Did you know Bitcoin does this?” “Oh wow, look what Saifedean tweeted.”
Yes, I know I sound like a nerd. I thought I was making headway with her. Anuja had her own Bitcoin wallet; she knew how it worked and why it mattered. Heck, she even used a hardware wallet without connecting it to the computer (air gap transaction). Little did I know she felt like a college student forced to take a course she didn’t want. The signs slowly started to appear. I could see her eyes roll when the topic came up. She would passively listen in one ear, out the other.
There came a point where I was told to stop using the ‘B’ word on certain days of the week. Bitcoin could not be brought up in the household! Think about that for a second: Bitcoin had to be banned from our conversation for her to feel reprieve.
To make matters worse, as she distanced herself, I was further drawn to it. I even held a signboard in the streets of Calgary. Before leaving for work, Anuja would ask, “Where will you stand today?” She didn’t want to run into her Bitcoin-crazed husband while walking with her colleagues.
During this time, we were planning a sabbatical, a year-long break, to travel through Africa from Cairo all the way down to Cape Town. Psycho-me insisted on inserting bitcoin into this as well and coined it our ‘Bitcoin pilgrimage’. It did not sit well with her! SHE HATED IT.
Anuja’s sentiment started to change when we arrived in Africa, specifically in Egypt, our first destination. Due to capital controls, the Egyptian Pound (EGP) wasn’t doing too well. The bank set one rate (1 USD = 31 EGP), while the street offered a ~20% premium (1 USD = 37 EGP). As we met locals and learned more about their economic troubles, I could see Anuja’s interest grow. Actively listening, even bringing up Bitcoin on her own accord. It was an odd feeling; she was warming up to the idea, not because I told her, but rather, she was seeing the problem with her own eyes.
When we landed in Addis Ababa, we approached a currency exchange kiosk. We handed 50 USD worth of Egyptian Pounds and asked for Ethiopian Birr (ETB). The agent pushed the stack of bills back to us. Confused, I slid it back towards him and asked to exchange it. He pushed it back forcefully and said, “Go back to Egypt, no value here!” Our jaws dropped. “What does he mean, go back?” Anuja asked. “It has no value outside its borders,” I said. This incident stayed with us for the rest of the trip. Reading about instances like this was one thing; experiencing it was a totally different ballgame.
Uganda was the tipping point where she saw Bitcoin being spent as everyday money (medium of exchange). Food, haircut, even perfume could be purchased with this new form of money. Bitcoin Kampala, the local circular economy, although small, had a strong community. Here, we noticed fresh fruits were littered at every street corner, yet no fresh juice was being sold. This led us to open JuicyB, a Bitcoin-themed juice shop. Anuja designed our store, its logo, patterns and turned the shop into a Bitcoin literacy center for the community. It would be an injustice not to mention our partners, Brindon and Afan, founders of Bitcoin Kampala. Also, shoutout to the Bitcoin Dadas for welcoming Anuja and giving a safe space for women to discuss all things Bitcoin!
Suggesting the rest is history won’t do justice to Anuja’s 180-degree change. After our sabbatical, she launched ‘Travel With Bitcoin’ to solve a problem we encountered throughout our trip: finding tour operators who accept bitcoin was not easy! In her first year alone, she held 4 tours each on a different continent. She’s spoken at multiple Bitcoin conferences about finding your own purpose in the space since many assume development is the only opportunity. She is living proof that this is not the case.
So what can you do? Taking your spouse to Africa isn’t the only option. Going to a place with high bitcoin adoption helps, but you can still make progress locally. Have them interact with the local community if there is one. Take them to a meetup so they can see how others view it, not just you. Have them spend Bitcoin on everyday items so they understand it’s usable. Ultimately, talk less and show more. Let them experience it!