1. I love to actually see places that I have only read about. Especially places that most "tourists" don't go to.
2. See places as they are, not as they may be described by tour operators. Meet people as real people, not as someone who just wants to make money off any "ugly American" who happens along. (I always learn a little of the local language before going, which is truly hard for an adult, but it helps with bonding. I speak only about four words of Chinese, but I was once told in China that "my Chinese is excellent", just because I tried.)
3. My major pet peeve is that most people who travel don't know history, geography, or foreign languages, and come with a lot of prejudices built in. That's why my husband and I travel alone where it is safe and possible to do so, and with adventure tours elsewhere. People who take adventure tours are usually quite a bit more interested in history, geography, foreign cultures, languages, and such.
4. What I value the most is to be kind, generous, patient, and to not harm others. The older I get, the more I believe that this is the best way to make your old age peaceful and calm.
5. No. We are very careful and check everything out.
6. Lots, but here is a partial list: Foreign languages and linguistics; animals; high altitude hiking and camping; sudoku; reading fiction and-non-fiction; finding out things I happen to want to know by searching the internet; being able to help others, especially family members who won't admit to needing help.
7 Being able to put the trip together with things I've read and studied. For example, during our recent trip to Europe, I visited the places related to Hemma of Gurk, an Austrian saint who lived around 1,000 AD, including her grave. For my husband, an expert on W.W. I history, we visited a museum in Austria and one in Slovenia that had wonderful historical pictures.
