Claudio was very helpful in Italian to my Italian speaking husband. He explained that he is just beginning to learn English. Apparently his brother does the email corespondence in English. I'm not sure how the experience would have been if my husband hadn't been able to converse with him. The apartment was quiet except for our limited experience on the upstairs terrace. The children in the next door apartment were probably having dinner and letting off steam. In the warm evening all windows were open. The apartment is very near the Massimo Theater which is amazing, and tons of shops and restaurants. The kitchen in the apartment was fine for making coffee in the morning but would have been tricky to cook in.