Elisa's place is not perfect for us but I am still giving it 5 stars. Allow me to explain. We learned that her apartment is in one of those restricted residential areas where private cars (except for residents') are not allowed from morning until 7PM. Since we were arriving at the end of a two week Italian adventure, we had a lot of luggage and souvenirs packed into the trunk and back seat of our rental car, and meeting our host three blocks down and drag all our luggage through cobblestone streets was a gritty nightmare. Elisa, however, arranged for a friend, Elizabeth (who up to this day, I believe is a superwoman) to meet us and help with our luggage. I had not paid close attention to the description of the location. What stuck in my mind was that it was at the mezzanine. I had a vision that it would be somewhat a half floor above the ground floor. But Elisa had described (and I did not read carefully) that it was the mezzanine between 2nd and 3rd floor. So hefting all our luggage again, surpassed an olympic event. Lesson to me: I should read descriptions more carefully. But, I guess, we loved the photos of the place and were enamored of pictures of the balcony and little pockets of greenery that we did not pay much attention to the text. The balcony was in the courtyard with many other apartments around. Aide from being a restful place, one can witness small activities of life around. I felt like James Stewart in Hitchcock's "Rear Window". My wife and I enjoyed cooking our Italian meals made of fresh ingredients from groceries nearby then taking them out of into the balcony and dine at sunset which, on fading out, were replaced by little lights that automatically switched on at dusk. The apartment had a collection of CDs which one could play amplified from a vintage cassette recorder. The TV was HD and a modern flat LCD and hooked to Italian channels. But we always carried some videos on laptops and I hooked up our HDMI cable into it for a late night movie. The bed was very comfortable; soft and had good linen. And the bedroom even had those little lights on the ceiling that made it relaxing. Everything was tastefully appointed, with some edge into it. Not sure if that is called "shabby chic". The kitchen counter was painted concrete. And so was the bathtub, in orange. Outside, on the street, Italian life bustles. We were in one of the three street legs from Piazza del Popolo and Spagna (Spanish Steps). We could never walk down the street uninterrrupted because there was always something to see in the shops. And Elisa made sure we knew everything there is to enjoy in the neighborhood and beyond. Before arriving, she actually sent me 10 messages of tips: gelaterias, ristorantes, osterias, groceries, transport options... I was almost embarrassed to admit I did...