The OP has. I've also done budget/independent/backpacker travel. Trust me, you won't turn into a hippie; you'll just get more cultured, rougher, intelligent,

The OP has. I've also done budget/independent/backpacker travel. Trust me, you won't turn into a hippie; you'll just get more cultured, rougher, intelligent, and worldly. Oh, a lot of things stop scaring you too (things like not having enough money, being alone, silly things IMHO). You meet incredible people too. I admire many of the people we all collectively tend to admire on Hacker News (PG and other hacker/smart people); but the people you meet across the world are so intelligent it will blow your mind - without ever having come across a computer in their entire life.