The place is clean and nicely set up (IKEA style). Unfortunately, very noisy, and has no access to daylight.
The living room and bedroom windows have roller shutters that can never be fully opened since the windows are at street level – basement windows. One can only leave the small gap between the blades to let air in and a hit of light in. However, direct sunlight can never get in; one only sees dogs, pigeons, people’s lower legs, and car wheels. One can open the glass windows as long as the roller shutter isn’t fully opened (there is a latch to keep the shutter from fully opening) preventing animals from coming in. The only window where I could have the shutter opened fully was the one in the kitchen, which faced everyone else’s windows. At least, it helped to create an airflow in the evenings before going to bed and then in the morning before leaving for the day.
Noises: based on my 1st day (check-in at 3 p.m., and tried to rest for a few hours before going out for supper) and evenings (I was out most of the day): airplanes every 7 min or so until midnight and starting again at 6 a.m.; dogs baking day and night; pigeons cooing; motorcycles. And renovation in the building past 7 p.m.! We had to close the windows in order to reduce the noise at night (that meant no air circulation).
There is no A/C, but the owner bought us a fan that helps one of us to sleep better. Monitor/ TV never worked (maybe we didn’t understand how it was supposed to work). Instructions for the washing machine would have been nice (we didn’t know if it took power or liquid – we were informed that it takes both); the “fast” cycle took 1-1/2 hr; again, since I’m not familiar with the washing machines in Portugal, I perhaps chose the wrong cycle).
It’s near the Rato Metro station. There are good restaurants nearby.
Catarina was prompt to text messages most of the time.