While traveling offers a wealth of enriching experiences, it’s crucial to be prepared for potential setbacks along the way.
A user asked the forum, What is the ugliest place you have ever been to? Here are the top responses.
WEST MEMPHIS, ARKANSAS
“I visited Memphis once; it was a cool city. I was driving on a highway right outside of it to get somewhere, took a wrong turn, and crossed the border into Arkansas. The moment we crossed the border, everything died.
The road suddenly crumbled; the grass immediately turned brown as if it hadn’t been watered for weeks. A creek turned into a swamp, and a car sat on the side of the road. Despite no visible damage to the car, there was a shattered back windshield and a body bag directly behind the car, with no police in sight.
It was like walking onto the set of a horror movie, and we immediately just made a U-turn. I have no idea what happened to that car, but I wasn’t gonna stick around and find out.”
ODESSA, TEXAS
“Odessa, Texas. The amount of trash and litter along the roadways and in town was awful.”
NORTH SULAWESI, INDONESIA
“North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Anywhere in the city is terrible, the jungles are better, but there’s still garbage everywhere, and there’s garbage in places that make you go, “who hiked 6 miles through the jungle with hundreds of pounds of trash.”
PHILIPPINES CITIES
“Lots of places in the Philippines are like that too. I was born there. The jungles and undeveloped areas are beautiful but fast disappearing. Many Filipinos get hurt when you mention the trash and the immense poverty. But then keep voting for politicians and political dynasties that keep them poor.”
DHAKA, BANGLADESH
“Dhaka, Bangladesh.”
“An absolutely nauseating crowd of people. Supremely packed no matter where you go. The entire city smells like a sewer. Not a single street is free of trash. It was such a stark contrast to the countryside, which is absolutely stunning.”
NOUAKCHOTT, MAURITANIA
“Nouakchott, Mauritania. A poorly planned capital of over 1 million people. Most of the roads are dirt, and due to the proximity of the Sahara, it constantly feels like you are at the beach no matter what you do. A layer of sand covers everything. Garbage everywhere. Goats running loose in the streets eating said garbage. Camels are getting slaughtered in the open. Beggars everywhere. No decent architecture.
Thankfully you can drive just 20 minutes out of town and see a world-class beach or pristine sand dunes, but the city is the ugliest in my extensive world travel.”
OREGON
“I was on a cross-country trip to Oregon. While crossing Wyoming, I had to stop for gas, and I stopped in a reservation town right off the highway; the name escaped me.
Drugs had destroyed the community. I went through town looking for a gas station and saw many broken windows, burned-down buildings. I eventually found the “gas station” – it looked like Fort Knox. I couldn’t tell where the door was because of the number of security bars/screens on the exterior. I’m guessing it was because of so many break-ins. I was also getting eyed down hard in the parking lot by a few locals.
I decided I could get gas up the road a bit. I’ve never seen a more hopeless, tragic place.”
NIAGARA FALLS
Niagara Falls, NY. A huge contrast to the Canadian Niagara Falls immediately over the river. So many abandoned buildings on the NY side, and it’s not really developed.
EAST ST. LOUIS, ILLINOIS
“I was riding my motorcycle cross-country and was passing through St. Louis when I had to stop for gas. I just took the next exit, unaware of where it went. I assumed there would be a gas station off a major highway, but not in East St. Louis.
When I saw the burned-out police car, I knew I was in the wrong place. I decided I had plenty of gas to get back on the highway immediately and go a few more miles.”
CAIRO, EGYPT
“Cairo, Egypt. I wouldn’t trade the experiences from there, but the city itself is a massive trash heap with questionable building codes.”
UTICA, NEW YORK
“I used to run a delivery route in Utica, and it blew my mind that they don’t bother to plow the side streets. Upstate gets a lot of lake effect snow, and they just keep driving over it and let it thaw and refreeze until the streets are covered with ice 2 feet thick.”
ARAPO, PERU
“Arapo Peru”
“The crafts being sold by the station were made from old tires. The shoes everyone wore were made from old tires. The air is thick with smoke from burning old tires. Our train stopped only briefly; the seats by the doors all had items stolen as we left the station.”
GORAKHPUR, INDIA
“Same! Worst place I’ve ever visited, and I’ve never seen it mentioned by anyone else. We had to spend the night there and were denied service at a few restaurants for no reason. We were followed around by 1-2 guys the entire time we were there and ended up spending the night on a train platform with a million rats. Never have I felt so unwelcome. The stars we got from people could kill.”
GOLDEN CORRAL
“Dirty tables. Dirty bathrooms. Kids are sticking their fingers into everything at the dessert buffet. Sketchy food with a chemical aftertaste.”
HOBBS, NEW MEXICO
“Hobbs, New Mexico. It was as if a rotten crotch was a small town.”
“I lived there for 8 years for like 4 summers I had migraines because, of the air quality”
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This article was originally published on Mrs. Daaku Studio.