Upon our arrival in Florence, we were greeted by Ilaria, Federico's friend, since he was out of town at the time. She gave us good directions to get from the train station to the apartment, and provided us some wonderful suggestions for local restaurants. Our private room was clean and located next to the shared bathroom. However, that is where the positives of the old school charm apartment ended.
Upon entry into the building, one is immediately engulfed in musky and stale air. The apartment felt like it needed to be aired out, fumigated, and given a thorough cleaning and drying. The old charm of the apartment felt completely misplaced due to a dire need for restoration of the antique furniture and linens. The apartment seems originally designed as a 3-bed 2-bath, plus living room, configuration but now the living room is being used as the host's bedroom, eliminating any common area for guests to relax outside of their own rooms. The internal courtyard is practically unusable between the clothes drying and seating - if no clothes are hanging, seating is available only for two.
The noise levels in the bedroom from the street were also very high. And this isn't the regular hustle-n-bustle of a market, but of shutters opening and closing, goods rolling on cobblestone streets, all starting at 4 in the morning. Closing the windows doesn't seem like an option as there is no alternative for air circulation.
We stayed in the bedroom at the very end of the hallway, possibly the master bedroom per the original configuration. Given the overall condition of the apartment, building, and possible alternate accommodations in the area, we felt we that we paid twice as much as it was truly worth (which included a cleaning charge of US $33 for just our bedroom).
Overall, this apartment has great potential to provide an unparalleled experience for guests from around the world.