Stara Zagora 231km east of Sofia is a hidden jewel. Peel back a rather mundane facade to find Tsar Simeon Veliki, a lime tree-lined, pedestrian avenue to rival La Rambla. I ate pizza al fresco, breathed in the dizzying scent of the lime flowers (the month of June even has a lime tree festival here), then lingered at the gates of the antique open air forum Augusta Trayana (just off Simeon Veliki), where the last chorus of Carmina Burana sent me home with a lump in my throat.