True and False at the same time. His alias says it all. He calls himself : "rare passenger". That's precisely what you should avoid being : "rare" and "passenger". That's a fiat mindset.

No wonder Bitcoin isn't working out for him.

Bitcoin is about peer to peer. It's about relationships. I don't buy from "merchants". I buy from friends (who may happen to be merchants).

When you're buying from friends, all of a sudden, regulations don't matter. Then, Bitcoin shines.

Fee madness? Use lightning, liquid bitcoin, ecash.

If I was travelling, I'd convert to fiat locally and spend cash until I made friends. Then, I'd convert them to bitcoin and buy only from them.