We arrived in Plovdiv, Bulgaria in the evening, and checked into the Skerzzo Hotel.
Our weirdly designed room, which unfortunately was below ground, and a bit mildewy-smelling.
Plovdiv is one of the oldest cities in Europe, with Roman ruins underneath the main shopping plaza.
Once they'd finished their pedestrian shopping strip, they realized a Roman stadium was underneath; so they built this cool viewing area.
Entering through the tunnel, it opens up to a below-ground exposure of the stadium.
I can haz sittin' on Spartacus' stadium! Believe it or not, not only was Spartacus real, but Plovdiv was his hometown.
A view from above ground.
Matt takes a seat :)
On the wall of the viewing area, Plovdiv put up a mural of what the view MIGHT have looked like in the days of Roman antiquity.
So when building the pedestrian shopping street in the 1980s, they unearthed these Roman ruins. But they decided to make the presentation of the original ruins...interesting.
No joke: To get to the ruins, you enter a SHOPPING MALL, head down a MIRRORED ESCALATOR, and voilá.
The shopping mall mezzanine looks right down into antiquity. So deeply weird.
There is, for reasons unknown, an abandoned piano and cafe right next to these ruins.
More ruins: This is the old city of Philippopolis. These were excavated, then sold to a private company, who promptly ignored them and built a freeway next to it.
A freeway going by Roman antiquity.
And, it's a FUCKING PARKING LOT too. Amazing.
After a long afternoon of sightseeing, we found the only restaurant in a very vacant Old Town selling Bulgarian rakia (brandy).
Lunch in Bulgaria: Clay pots are used to roast vegetables and meats.
Weirdly, everywhere you go in Plovdiv, there are these outdoor espresso vending machines. Even in vacant lots.
I am concerned for Bulgarian nutrition. This is what seems to be their major food group: fast food pizza, served from windows.
Plovdiv, Bulgaria