One of the worst travel experiences I had was when my family and I went to Washington, DC to visit our people (that's where we are from, although we now live in NC) in a cheap car my dad got two days before we left. This was back somewhere in 1988 or 89.
Anyway, we had already told our people in DC (grandparents, cousins, aunts, etc) that we were going to visit them, but then my dad's car broke down on him. Well, he bought a 1985 (I think) Oldsmobile Omega for $200 from a "buy here, pay here" lot, and asked the seller if he thought that the new-used car could make to DC. Naturally, the sellsman told him yes, he thought it could.
Well, we rode to DC with no problem. But, on our way back, somewhere in the middle of Virginia, the car started letting out some heavy white smoke. The car eventually stalled on us. There we were, some hundreds of miles from home, with our luggage, stuck on the side of I-95, without a clue as to how to get home.
Fortunately, by the grace of God Almighty Himself, there was a tractor trailor- truck driver that was headed in the same direction we were. This nice White stranger (man) took us (5-member black family) and our luggage all the way back to Statesville, NC in his truck. He did not charge us one penny.
I really don't remember what my dad did with the car. I think he just left it in Virginia.
But I would say that that was the most embarrasing, worst traveling experience I have ever had.
