Maxii et al.

I’m not sure what it is about Nutella but I’m sure it’s good for you.

Not appreciating the distance, we walked from our hotel near Piazza Navona to MAXII, the new contemporary art museum, www.fondazionemaxxi.it,  designed by the Anglo-Iranian architect, Zaha Hadid. It was sensational. (We needed much water en route, I might add, as it was another incredibly hot day.) The installation pieces were charming, clever, challenging and inventive as you’d expect of avant-garde art, at least within a certain conceptual modernity.

Smartly taking a taxi back, we tried to go to Da Baffetto, a pizza place, for lunch only to learn it was only open in the evenings, so we turned a corner to find Montecarlo pizzeria, a pretty decent spot. The usual thin-crust pizzas, fast service, etc.

After a rest but in need of no more food, nevertheless, in the interests of completeness, we rolled ourselves into another taxi to Antico Arco, a restaurant/wine bar, www.anticoarco.it, near, oddly enough, an ancient arch. They were very charming and gracious and the dinner was very good, especially the primi piatti.

The view of the city from across the Tiber, atop on of the hills, was itself worth the ride. Much as one doesn’t think of it near the Forum, Colliseum, etc., it really is a city of seven hills.