The apartment and rental circumstances were extremely disappointing. Arriving, you climb a dark staircase, painted black with a neon sign. As you enter, you are confronted with huge distortive “fun house” mirrors glued to the wall, in two pieces, with one of them coming apart from the wall and bowing into the room. Bizarre, poorly maintained, and discomfiting. One wall in the living room appears to have had wallpaper incompletely removed, perhaps to mimic deteriorating Roman walls but just looking unfinished. Check-in was impersonal: lock boxes and admission via a remote unlocking system—plus threats of fines for not doing things properly in the absences of onsite contact. Toilet seat unhinged, coffee maker broken, drain top missing from a bathroom sink. When we informed management of the problems, we were told that all was fine when we arrived, seeming to add accusation to threat. I have been coming to Rome since 1966 and had an apartment in Italy for ten of those years. I am a professor of Italian cinema, so the country and city mean much to me. This is by far the least Italian/Roman experience I have had as a visitor, and, the cost seemed completely out of proportion given the accommodations. It was the most I have paid on a nightly basis for housing anywhere in Italy. My partner and I are not given to unjustified criticism; we rated both of our other VRBO stays in Italy on this trip “5,” with lavish praise.