Great thread. For reasons similar to those mentioned above, I have never understood the experience/things dichotomy either. Things oftentimes create experiences, even if it is in ways that I can't understand or relate to.
This might be coming from the fact that I traveled and lived abroad a lot already in my twenties, but I don't feel the need to travel across the world to have meaningful moments anymore. So much about life and meaning rests in relationships, and the most important ones I have at the moment are where I live currently.
Having children can be great in this respect, because you can see the world through their eyes and relearn how to experience the joy in the ordinary. I'm not saying children are the only way to rediscover this, but they do help. For me, the crux of MMM's message is about finding happiness in nature and the ordinary cycles of life. I don't think evolving is good if it means that we can no longer find immense pleasure in a simple cup of tea or coffee (or whatever drink you like) that we prepare ourselves.
Travel can just become another form of lifestyle inflation. There's also the practical issue of it just being unpleasant these days. Being pack in like sardines in a plane, security checks, etc. I'm glad I did a lot of it when I was young and less annoyed by such things.
Having said all this, some of my most memorable moments have been abroad. If I'm ever sad or struggling and want to go to my "happy place", I will imagine being on a cliff overlooking the sea in Wales or in the countryside of Germany, etc. Perhaps I need to make more of an effort to experience the beauty of my own neck of the world more often. That's one of the perks of travel - that it takes you outside of the routine and forces you to see new things. I'm also an historian, so I appreciate the first hand knowledge of the past that traveling to new places can bring.
I am much more interested in new ideas. My life is permanently enriched when I learn something I didn't know before, or gain an understanding of a perspective I didn't understand before. Reading books is unmatched as an activity for learning, and meeting new people (for more than just a week or two) is the best way I've found to gain new perspectives. Both of these things are free or nearly so. The library has almost every book I could want, and the cost of good conversation is a cup of coffee or a pint of beer. If I never left my hometown, but had unlimited access to books and good conversation, I would want for nothing.
You sound like someone who I could be friends with in real life :). Ultimately, knowledge is what excites me, and the best way to do this is through reading. To be a great thinker or to understand humanity, you don't have to travel. For instance, Immanuel Kant never left the province or even the city in which he lived; yet, he was still able to write things that changed philosophy. He was able to formulate ideas that resonate even today. I've never been to Russia, but I feel like I understand the history and culture of the place by reading loads of Russian literature. Reading can unlock worlds not only in the present but also enable you to time travel and learn about past worlds that don't exist anymore. It's the best thing ever. Even though I know you don't technically need eyes to read, I would rather lose my legs than my ability to read books.