People's theatre

They're playing the European chess championsips in Plovdiv. I've been there, in 1991: the amphitheatre in particular is superb, and you can actually see it.

You expect to, of course, that's what amphitheatres are for. Everywhere but Huesca. Two years ago they discovered an old Roman amphitheatre (Huesca originated as the Roman town of Osca) during the construction of flats inside a buolding just a few metres away from where I live. Experts came in and pronounced it a most promising architectural find, possibly extending a long way under the surrounding area, very important and exciting: the mayor came along to have his photograph taken with the excavators, to say how important the find was and how the Town Hall would assist the excavators' work. Then everybody went away again, the construction of the flats continued and nothing more was heard of the amphitheatre. The flats are finished now and they're for sale, competing with three million other unoccupied dwellings in Spain.

I suppose at least it's protected from graffiti - though not from other kinds of cultural vandalism - unlke Plovdiv, if the photos are anything to go by. I remember seeing graffiti on the walls when I was there: one of the messages said WEST BROM and another one said QPR.