I started with Ubuntu 8.10 on Gnome 2, and switched to Debian 8 after Snaps were introduced in Ubuntu 16.04.
I still use Gnome with a very Gnome 2-esque layout. AND default Adwaita. What can I say, it’s digital home for me. Almost every app I use is Flatpak, so it’s always fresh.
Ubuntu 8.10-12.04 Ubuntu MATE 14.04 Debian 8-13 with GNOME
I’ve played around on a lot of other distros, but Debian with Gnome (set up like Gnome 2) has been my home for a while.