We enjoyed our stay in Nicolas' apartment- it was very well located and easy to walk or take the Metro (Gare de l'Est) all over Paris. The apartment is very well decorated and pretty spacious. It's on a street with a few bars / has thin walls in the building so make sure to bring earplugs if noise bothers you for sleeping. The building is old (smells of smoke pretty strongly, though the apartment mostly doesn't) with no elevator, but the person who greeted us was very helpful and nice and helped us bring our bags up. We could have used with a few more amenty/items in the apartment (extra towels etc) but not a huge deal. Overall a good choice if you are looking for a basic stay in the Canal St. Martin area.