Five friends packed into a car made for four, cigarettes lit, music playing in the background.

Road trips. Every college student should take one, and my first one was last weekend.

Five of us loaded up and drove to Atlanta. What we thought would be a fun, relaxing weekend away from school turned into the road trip from hell.

We wanted to leave New Orleans early, but we pulled out two hours late. We still anticipated a decent arrival time.

What we didn’t anticipate was breaking down in Opelika, Ala. I had never heard of Opelika, but now I can say I’ve been there. Not too many people can say that.

Opelika is a small town, right outside of Auburn. The people there are nice, but they have one major drawback.

They are Auburn fans, and I have a Georgia Bulldogs license tag on my car. I wasn’t entirely sure we would find anyone willing to help a Georgia fan in distress.

Luckily, we found “Opelika Autos,” and they agreed to fix my car if I would say, “War damn eagle,” which is what Auburn fans eagerly yell at any given moment.

Yelling anything of this sort is against all beliefs, morals and values I was raised with.

I was faced with a dilemma. Do I tell the damn eagle to war and get the car fixed, or do I stick to my bones and say, “Go Dawgs”?

I arranged a compromise. The other four passengers said it for me.

With War Eagle out of the way, the friendly crew went to work. They thought it could be fixed quickly, but that would have been too easy.

We tried to be patient and smile about it, but it was hard. I was afraid if I said too much, though, the crew might make me sing the Auburn fight song.

When we finally got to Atlanta, we all had an amazing time. There are lots of pictures, funny moments and inside jokes.

This was what I had expected from the road trip: a good time, a few laughs and a lot of memories.

What I hadn’t expected was the late departure, the breakdown in the depths of Alabama, or the speeding ticket I got on the way back to New Orleans.

But I realize now that it is the unexpected events that will make this road trip so memorable.

I could have just remembered going to Atlanta for the weekend and having a good time.

Instead, I get to remember the stories of the drive there and back.

For as long as I live, I will never forget Opelika, or the helpful country crew of “Opelika Autos.”

The road trip from hell will always be special to me.

So if there are any of you that haven’t taken a road trip with your friends yet, I highly recommend it.

If it turns out to be a road trip from hell, try not to worry about it too much. At least you’ll have some good stories to tell.