Michelle is a marvelous host--I will definitely stay at her place again when I'm in New York. The bed was super comfortable and my mom and I had everything we needed. Michelle even provided a small Continental breakfast on our first morning, and answered our questions about the city and the neighborhood. Michelle even provided maps and Metro cards, saving us a couple bucks here and there. She has an impressive selection of tour guides for cities around the world. I love the cultural vibrancy of Harlem so I was excited to stay at Michelle's.

Michelle helped me find local vendors for my sister's birthday cake and she recommended restaurants and clubs. I particularly enjoyed a free Thursday jazz evening at Lennox Saphire (127th Street and Lennox Avenue)--I went there for dinner and music all by myself and had an absolute ball. The crowd was so friendly and welcoming.

A true perk is the ease of accessibility to Michelle's home, which is a short walk from the express metro stop (127th A,B,C,D line) and it's very easily accessible from Laguardia (via the M60 bus). In this case, I had to go to JFK. I hopped on the A train at 127th and it took me directly to the Air Train. I also enjoyed a dinners at Maison Harlem and other French and French-Senegalese restaurants.

I see that Anastasija complained the house is in an African-American neighborhood!?!??? Frankly, I'm surprised and saddened by her racist remark. Harlem is famous for fostering American culture -- arts, jazz music, the Apollo, and the Harlem Renaissance -- for crying out loud. As for me, every person I encountered in the neighborhood was vary friendly, though I'd avoid walking through the projects at night. In fact, I posted the following on Facebook one morning, over a delicious breakfast at Lennox Saphire:

"Walking on the street in Harlem just now everyone was so friendly. Three people said good morning and others I passed by smiled--and I only walked 2.5 blocks. Yes, mine is a genuine but touristy smile. Nevertheless, genuine friendliness is what I've encountered for decades when I visit this great city.

What's more, when people here call me beautiful they are almost always very respectfully. "You look so beautiful this morning," I was told today. Nice, isn't it?"

In most cases, when you smile, the world smiles back. I highly recommend Michelle's accommodations!