We had lunch at Agata e Romeo, another Michelin star restaurant (Rome has four in total). This is a smallish place on a busy avenue. The interior was very cozy with an amazing wine cellar. Excellent, traditional Roman cuisine, which tends to be heavier on offal than you'd expect. The chef is a bit of a celebrity and the place has a definite buzz about it, although service is more efficient than friendly. (Food-15, Decor-16, Service-12).



After lunch we hit our last major church, the nearby Santa Maria Maggiore, the subject of these photos. The church was built on a pagan temple to Juno around 350 AD, but has expanded dramatically through the centuries and has bits and pieces from all different architectural styles. The church was a mainstay on the pilgrim circuit because it supposedly contains the manger where Jesus was born. I guess it's possible, but it's just a few pieces of wood tied up with iron, so who knows. Anyway, today the wood is upstaged by the mosaics, covering much of the church walls and dating from the eleventh century.