Great subject! I feel and have observed many times that people are pretty different after about 3 years. In a sense that is normal, people mature through their life experiences but also they build an identity based on what they want people to think.
One of the easiest ways to see this in when you are introduced to someone new : often the first way a person describes themself is by telling you what they do as a job. If you think about it that is a pretty shallow way to describe a person ... and then what happens if they get fired? Are they a different person ?
The fun thing about going backpacking for a long while in that you get to rewrite and re invent yourself, exactly because you are with strangers who have no expectations !
I agree. Also because you are away from people of your circle, people from work you see everyday, family and friends. I really believe that people around us can influence the way we perceive ourselves and the way we behave. The moment we are by ourselves in a different environment we get to meet our true self without the masks we wear everyday unconsciously to meet people expectations.