Great follow up, @diabolika. Really touching. Travelling really is a life-altering experience.
I haven't really consciously thought about it before, but after reading your story here it's made me think back to some of the people I've met in my travels. I'm a fairly reserved quiet guy while travelling, and don't particularly go out of my way to meet other travellers (I travel alone, most of the time). But in a way, that makes the people that I do meet even more special(?)/interesting. Honestly, though, the people I've enjoyed meeting the most are the locals. And I don't mean that in a sort of 'I hang out with da locals' kind of way. Just locals that you meet incidentally via your accommodation or train trips etc. And even better is when you can't communicate via the same language. Somehow it makes the experience even more special, the fact that you managed to 'converse' about stuff with people who you share no significant language with. Or perhaps it says something about my isolated ways that I don't really want to have a meaningful conversation with anyone... ;)