I travel almost exclusively international for work. The best gadget I've bought was my iPad. Before, I used to carry 5-6 books on a trip with me so I'd always have something to read. I hate running out of reading material, especially in a country where I may not speak the language or just don't feel like reading a novel in the local language. With the iPad, I can take several books with me with no weight and buy a new one anytime I want. I can also watch the occasional movie on it.

In terms of food - learning what is healthy in restaurants and learning that I didn't need to clean my plate were key lessons.