Paolo is the best host we have had in the six years we have been traveling to Italy. We always rent apartments and we are fussy about where we stay and who we rent from. Paolo is superb. He is intent on making your stay as good as it can be without interfering. He stayed in touch and made us feel very comfortable. He is a kind and generous person, someone we want to know and keep as a friend. The apartment is very large and felt like home. The bed is comfortable. Wifi was great. TV worked perfectly with some English language stations – tv programs not just bbc. Two bathrooms and great water pressure and hot water. The apartment is well stocked. Plenty of kitchen supplies, linens, towels, pillows and food! Paolo provided a grand supply of ham, cheese, yogurt, cookies, crackers, tea, coffee (fantastic k-cup machine in addition to a regular coffee maker), milk, butter, and delicious olive oil from his private grove! It is situated in a quiet neighborhood. The trattoria two doors down is the best and took good care of us on our first night. The Mercato di Sant/Ambrogio is a couple of minutes away and is the best in town. It is smaller than the Mercato Centrale and has more of a local feel to it. Everything was an easy walk, including Oltrano on the other side of the Arno. We arrived on December 26 and our plane was diverted to Pisa due to weather. Paolo was going to pick us up at the Pisa airport! We convinced him not to because we could get a quick bus to the Florence train station, where he met us, took us to the apartment, got us situated, then walked us around the neighborhood. Mind you, because of the diversion, we arrived about 3-4 hours later than expected, but Paolo set aside his own schedule to accommodate us. When it was time to go home, Paolo insisted on taking us to the airport. He made sure we got to the right place once inside the airport – incredible! This was our third trip to Florence and without a doubt our most memorable because of Paolo. Grazie mille! Speriamo di rivedervi! Your friends, Paula and Tom.