My thanks to Claudio and all the staff at Hotel Smeraldo for a lovely stay in the Dipendenza, which is a fully renovated building just around the corner form the main hotel. In 2006, five girlfriends stayed in the main hotel, so when I decided to go back to Rome I called to see if they had a single room for me and they offered the single unit in their Dipendenza for $90 Euro/night. I did mention Rick Steeves travel book to get the rate. And that did not include breakfast, which was an extra 7 Euro per day. That's still relatively expensive for me as a solo traveler - since the Euro is 1 to about 1.60 in Canadian dollars, however, the location is the absolute best in the city, right in the heart of the ancient centre, adjacent to Campo de Fiori, where there is a wonderful farmers market every morning, and near many fabulous shops and restaurants. It became my neighbourhood for the nine-night stay, and I was very happy here. My room was tiny, but who really cares? It had a comfortable single bed, a TV, a small table and chair, one window overlooking the street, a small bathroom with sink, toilet, bidet and shower stall - imagine all of that wrapped in beautiful marble and hardwood. Daily maid service is excellent and friendly. Hotel staff helped me with everything I needed help with - from getting directions, to finding train schedules, to booking return transport to the airport. The hotel offers Wi Fi and an in-house terminal for on-line communications in one central location for a fee. It can be very noisy in the immediate area, lots of street sounds almost around the clock, so if you are a light sleeper this may not be the best location. I feel very safe and comfortable here and would go back at the drop of a hat. Love Italy. Love Rome. Love Hotel Smeraldo, Love Rossanas Caffe - Grazie Mille.