It’s hard to know where to start with my list of problems… Maybe a new property management is at fault? Dunno. Makes me wary of any Air BnB. Maybe I’ll just stay at hotels.
1) First and foremost, the instructions for getting the key were tortuous and incorrect. We were told to obtain the key, which was to be found in a box, “légèrement à gauche de l’immeuble sur la grille grise.” My French is pretty good, and: the box was to be found on the bike rack, porte velos, which was MORE THAN 7 METERS from the door. I measured it. In no one’s world does “grille” mean “portes-velos”… Period. I googled the phrase “grille” and of the hundreds of images I found, none were of a bike rack. In no world is 7 meters “legerment a gauche.” Legerment for bombs, I guess. An hour after frantically trying to reach the property management, we mounted the steep stairwell (50+ steps) with our 35 kilos of baggage. Not mobility friendly! 2) The place is VERY NOISY. Not the fault of the owner, I guess, but you should know that the courtyard the place overlooks is heavily used, very noisy, and there’s no airflow in the apartment without the windows open… which means, expect to be awakened by raucous teens at 2am. Sweet dreams. 3) No knives in the kitchen. There’s this plastic thing with the word TORTE on it… Useful, if you’re slicing tarte I guess. But otheriwse, SOL. In France. Lyon is actually famous for its knives. OMG. 4) The washing machine flashed “service” halfway through the cycle. I spent an hour washing the clothes in the sink; drying them in the bathroom now. Hope they’re dry before I leave tomorrow. 4) The foldout bed in the living area is… pretty old, pretty uncomfortable. Think: Soviet Union, 1990, only lacking the charm. 5) Light fixture aside the bed, itself jammed in a corner, is broken, revealing a bunch of gnarly wires ready to arch. Fun! 6) Sit down shower, circa 1962. Do you like sitting in a puddle?