-
@ Keith Meola
2025-03-12 20:20:50
Bitcoin fixes this – what I thought immediately upon stepping off the ferry in Isla Mujeres.
An hour prior, a friend of a friend brought me to the ferry in Cancun as a private transport and I now had to transfer them money.
The backstory of why I was paying an hour after the fact doesn’t matter now. What mattered then was that I needed to find an ATM to withdraw cash. Furthermore, I also needed to find an OXO convenience store to send the cash to the friend’s bank account. If only they accepted bitcoin!
While this was my technically 2nd time in Isla Mujeres, it was 1st true time there. My technical 1st visit was when I was 9 years old with my family in 2004. Now at 30 years old and traveling solo and staying on the island for 2 weeks, this was my true first time on the island.
### How I Ended Up in Isla Mujeres
I had first heard about [BTC Isla ](https://keithmeola.com/btc-isla-bitcoin-circular-economy/)a few months prior in October 2024. I stumbled upon a girl named Isa on Nostr who is trying to orange-pill the island and create a Bitcoin circular economy. Subsequently, hearing her interview on Efrat Fenigson’s podcast [“You’re The Voice”](https://www.youtube.com/@EfratFenigson) inspired me to reach out to Isa.
I messaged her on Nostr saying that I thought what she was doing with BTC Isla was cool and inspiring, and that I wanted to help. Flash-forward to January 13 2025 and there I was on the island with boots on the ground.
### First Day
While I didn’t meet Isa until the following day during one of two Bitcoin meetups I was on the island for, my first experience with Bitcoin was later that first evening. A fellow bitcoiner on the island messaged me seeing if I wanted to grab tacos for dinner and explore the island, and that’s what we did.
However, with a severe itch to start spending bitcoin as soon as possible, I set off to the Mayakita restaurant to grab lunch and pay in bitcoin.
Delicious food with a view!
Mayakita is the unofficial hub for [BTC Isla](https://www.btcisla.xyz/) and is the usual meeting spot for both the Bitcoin meetups and classes. It’s in a great location with a beautiful view right on the ocean and serves up delicious food. Pair all of that with the fact that they excitedly accept bitcoin, and you’ve got a restaurant that I’d frequent almost every day during my 2 weeks on the island.
Later that evening, the fellow bitcoiner picked me up and we went out for a taco dinner. Naturally, we paid for the tacos with bitcoin, and it was an exciting experience!
The owner of the restaurant was glad to accept bitcoin and chatted with us a little. He seemed intrigued to hear that I had traveled from the US to Isla Mujeres specifically because of Bitcoin.
Later that evening, while exploring the island, we stopped by a food cart serving churros that had recently started accepting bitcoin. I was finally able to have some delicious churros again after being away from Mexico for a year, and best of all was able to pay for them with bitcoin.
Octopus tacos!
There was a visible reaction and excitement from the cart owners when they saw us pull up. They knew my friend, and knew that our arrival meant they’d get to stack some sats and receive some bitcoin!
It was a solid first day on the island. I reunited with the Mexican food that I love dearly and also paid for it all with bitcoin. Wins all around!
### Day 2: Bitcoin Meetup & Down To Business
The next day was a big one, as first there was a Bitcoin meetup in the morning! Afterwards, Isa and I would be spending the afternoon together working on BTC Isla and driving around orange-pilling merchants.
I found the meetup especially fun because it was only the second Bitcoin meetup I had ever attended.
The friend from the previous evening’s adventures was there, as well as several others. Breakfast, coffee, and smoothies were enjoyed by everyone and paid for in bitcoin.
The official BTC Isla tuk-tuk also made an appearance!
Isa brought it out to the front of the restaurant for the meetup. As is a new tradition for BTC Isla, the new Bitcoiners to the island signed the tuk-tuk and posed for a picture with it. A fun tradition and a way to display community growth, in my opinion.
After the meetup, Isa and I got to work discussing ways I could help her with BTC Isla during my 2 weeks on the island. We then set off in a golf cart to start visiting merchants and try to orange-pill.
In total, we went to about 10-12 places that afternoon, officially orange-pilling one merchant!
We handed out a flyer I had made to several other businesses and had a few conversations with owners as well. Some businesses were completely uninterested in Bitcoin, not even wanting to hear what we had to say. Others, however, were intrigued and were happy to chat.
While we only got one new merchant to accept bitcoin, we felt good about our efforts. We likewise felt confident that 2 or 3 businesses would start accepting bitcoin after thinking it over.
My lack of Spanish-speaking ability was frustrating for me. It was clear that it would be an obstacle in my goal to orange-pill 10 merchants while on the island.
My first 2 days on the island were a smashing success in my mind. Now, I had some goals and tasks to work on over the next 10 days, and I was eager to start.