Living in the past doesn't mean the past was better. The game has evolved past the point where you must play a certain way, and that it's the only way the game was intented to be played.
As for GoV being torture, you aren't required to join the alliances. I low manned/duo'd/solo'd GoV most of the time. Clearing 3 levels at 70+ without having to schedule a time to show up, wait for members, travel to a camp, et cetera is a huge advantage over the supposedly way this game was meant to be played.
As for gaining more EXP from parties over GoV, well, you obviously haven't done enough GoV to know what you're talking about. Sure, per mob EXP may look all shiny, but how long does it take to kill and how much downtime do you have between your massive chains? Quite literally, as a duo, my wife and I were burning through 2-5 pages of GoV per hour, depending on the page, the level and type of mob. The only time I can see you outpacing the gains from GoV would be on Lolibris.
I get it, you missed the "good old days". Here's the thing: Change is the only constant in the universe, so you either adapt or die. This game has changed. It's moved away from the waiting game. Why restrict yourselves to some archaic leveling strategy when you could utilize your 5-man party to go after DC-EM mobs, burn pages, level faster, get skillups, and, you know, play the game as opposed to sitting on your hands WAITING to play the game?