This was my first visit to Sicily and Palermo, and it was a very positive stay.
Renato apartment is absolutely wonderful. I felt at home when I got there. It's a breeze - with lots of daylight from the many windows -
and with high heights and hence lots of volume space. All rooms are nice, including kitchen that provides cooking possibilities. There are AC in two rooms; library and bedroom, and there is a roof terrace with a great view of the city. The outer area is full of life. A food market just around the corner of the house door. The smell (or smell, depends on your preference) "communicates" lunch and dinner. Walking along the streets of food markets is an interesting experience. The sound of people talking, doing business and argue on questions of interest with great intensity orally and with gestures: a native language seems to be.
The old town of Palermo, where the apartment is located, has all the characteristics you can expect: narrow streets, genuine and varied standards for the buildings. Some took care of o with others in need of rebuilding; also an ongoing process. Lots of people and a lot of business transactions which may be an appropriate wording. You can get a perfect espresso on all the cafes in Palermo, even those found in "a hole in the wall" kind of cafe's, which means a very narrow and small place in a house, not really expected to hold a cafe. I like those places. And inside everyone there is a Barista who owns one of the big machines that makes such good coffee. Why, and how is it that I can not find such good coffee outside Italy?
All in all, I had a wonderful stay and I would highly recommend the Renato apartment, and that specific area in Palermo.
Ciao
Stefan