Some cities turn to face their rivers; others turn their backs on them. Zaragoza is one of the latter. Situated between Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and Bilbao, Zaragoza is a city that is attempting to base its reputation less on its own merits than on its location, its proximity to other, more important places.

Its anonymity may also help explain why its Expo has been one of the least publicised international exhibitions of recent years. Perhaps Expos, with their brand of avant-garde design and whacky pavilions, have become irrelevant now that skylines from London via Dubai to Beijing are studded with radical skyscrapers and difficult shapes. The UK and US haven’t even bothered to exhibit.