Sunday 20 March 2011

Pizzeria "Da Baffetto"

To enjoy the tipical atmosphere of a roman pizzeria together with the voices of loud locals and with their excellent pizzas, once you are in Rome it is a "must" go eating at Baffetto (litterally "cute mustaches"). It is in via del Governo Vecchio 114, very close to Piazza Navona. Baffetto makes thin and crunchy pizzas, done in a tipical wood oven. Be ready to wait a little while before entering and as soon as you are done to be hurried on your way. The experience of eating a pizza at Baffetto is definitely a good one. Don't miss the fried starters before the pizza!

Thursday 3 March 2011

The Basilica of Maxentius (and Costantine)

 The Basilica of Maxentius is one of the greatest buildings of ancient Rome that we can admire today. It was built at the beginning of the IV century A.D. by Maxentius who has been emperor for few years before being defeated by Costantine. It was occupying quite a large area and what we can see today from Via dei Fori Imperiali is just a small aisle of the whole complex. Inside there was a huge statue of Costantine (modelled from a previous one of Maxentius) and few parts of it survived. Just the head of this statue is 2.6 meters of height! Going towards the Colosseum, just at the end at the right of the monument, you can see the immense vaults of nearly 25 meters. These vaults, because of their greatness and harmony, have inspired many Renaissance artists. All the rest of the construction was lost during an earthquake occurred in the IX century and the materials have been used for the decoration of the old St. Peter.

                 
                       Basilica of Maxentius, internal part

Basilica of Maxentius, external part