Half undomesticated bachelor pad, half Ivory Merchant Room with a View. Lots of narrow stairs both to get to the apartment, and to get from the bedroom to the bathroom. Tricky in the middle of the night after an excess of Chianti. Clean but could use a good kitchen re-org. Funky furnishings. Lots of obstacles for tall people to hit their heads. Impossible closet. For toddlers, forget about it. That’s the bachelor half.

But the beautiful brick ceiling in the bedroom, the antique fireplace, the typically Florentine shutters, the 19th century ironwork, the glassed in love nest at the top of it all, and that unbelievable view. Incredible. The Duomo, the Pitti palace, the Palazzo Vecchio clock tower, the roof tops of Firenze and Boboli gardens… all appreciated from swaying hammock or private breakfast table for two while the church bells chime all around. Well worth the inconveniences for those cursed with middle age sensibilities.

Unforgettably charming.