Has nobody heard of www.couchsurfing.com?
Why travel all the way around the world to pay money and sit in a hotel room/private apartment?
I've done travelling and couldn't recommend it enough. It's a fantastic experience but by far the biggest benefit, and most memorable moments, were from the people I met (even though I'm not really a 'people' person). Couchsurfing allows you to stay for free with a local host.. think AirBnB but FREE and where you can actually speak and interact with them. Most of the hosts in the more remote countries are fellow American's doing Peace Corp. It's interesting to hear their different perspective on their host country, and they enjoy the contact with another 'westerner' too. Lots of other hosts will happily invite you sailing, climbing, hiking, BBQing with them or their mates too.
If you're happy to sleep on the floor occasionally (rarely in my experience) then I highly recommend any travellers (particularly solo) give it a go.
If you're really adventurous, or want some even more amazing, serendipitous encounters with incredible people, stick out your thumb ;-)