Some of you might be thinking that an apartment on the other side of the Coliseum--and not in the city center--would be out of the way and less desirable. However, we can tell you that there are certain advantages that override being in the middle of everything. First, it's quiet at night, so you can get some sleep. Second, you get to get away from the rest of your tourist cohorts and breathe. And finally, emerging every night from a day's trek elsewhere from the subway and seeing the Coliseum is a wonderful experience. More walking--yes. Worth it--yes.

The apartment really is fabulous. There were enough staples to pull together meals without having to buy those small ingredient items, which was really helpful. If you are a family of 4 as we are, having 2 bathrooms is a big plus. And we should note the the sofa bed pulls out into 2 twin beds rather than 1 single bed, which minimizes kid squabbles in a way that other sofa beds do not. And being architects, we particularly appreciated the architectural feel and the aesthetic pleasure of the place, which is really wonderful. Finally, all the Rome travel books and literature really came in handy.

We'd definitely stay here again.