A whole apartment for the price of a room! This is a huge apartment, about 1200 sq ft/120 sq m, in a beautiful building from the 1920s. It sits high up top of a morro in the middle of the Tivoli neighbourhood, looking out over the Bay of Santiago in one direction, and the centre of old Santiago in the other. There are two bedrooms, two double beds, as well as a full kitchen. The building sits on a very quiet street, with no through traffic. (n.b. as of april 1, there is no gas for cooking in santiago, so only the electric cooker is available, which is normally only for cooking in a pinch) The full address is Calle Princesa 215, corner of General Rabi, in the area called Tivoli. It is just around the corner from a small club called La casa de las tradiciones. The apartment is up the staircase, and it is the white door to your left, with the white and blue sticker. The apartment is located one floor up in an historic building called El Fende. Down at the corner there is a lookout point known as the Balcon de Tivoli, hence the name of the casa. There is a lovely music video shot in the neighbourhood, which can be seen online. Much of it was shot on the block in front of the house! Search youtube for: "Ludmila Merceron - La pastelera del TIVOLÍ (VIDEO OFICIAL)". (note that there is also concert version of the song.) At the back there is an open terrace, and a fully equipped kitchen. (gas cooker, cooking pots, pressure cooker, plates, utensils, etc.) The bathroom is very large and recently renovated. A heater on the shower head means hot water. There are two bedrooms with double beds. The room at the rear has a large air condiitioner, which will also cool the second bedroom, by leaving the connecting door open. (the entire apartment is not air conditioned. way too big.) The entrance to the apartment brings you into a large double living room. To your right there is a plant filled balcony from which you can see shipping in the bay. To your left you look out over old Santiago with the cathedral rising up. It is south facing and is a lovely place to have a coffee in the morning. The casa is about 22 metres long, 7 wide and 5 high. Since it sits up high, there is nearly always a cool breeze blowing through. All the rooms have windows, so it is unusually bright, especially in the morning. If you ask, you can go up on the azotea (roof) for possibly the best view in Santiago. Calle Princesa (airbnb uses the 'official' name, Jose de Diego) is not quite a dead end at this point, but there is almost no through traffic. As a result of this, the street is very sociable. The neighbours hang out, talking about the latest news, kids play, and there is nearly always a dominos game going on, even under the streetlights at night. There is a little paladar down the street, owned by Cuqui. Bring a plate and he will cook you a very nice meal. There are also restaurants a few minutes walk away. A few minutes walk downhill and you are on the malecon, where there are some restaurants, and which is always filled with people in the evening, visiting with friends and, in the new cuban fashion, connecting to internet. In the other direction, you are about 500 metres from the Plaza Cespedes, the centre of town. The neighbourhood (reparto) is called Tivoli, after a long torn down movie theatre. It is the place where the french came when they were fleeing the revolution in Haiti in 1804. There are still many descendants of the haitian slaves they brought with them living there. It is also the heart of music in Santiago. Miguel de Matomorros, who wrote Lagrimas Negras used to live around the corner on Calle Santiago, and Juan Formel, of Los Van Van, used to live a couple of blocks away on San Carlos. One of the best places to see the traditional music of the septetos is just around the corner, La casa de las tradiciones. It is in an old original house, and is the most intimate place to see music in town. Depending what time of the year you are visiting, there are often Congas, marching bands, that parade through the streets. For a few days in April, there is a neighbourhood festival, with music, food booths and keg beer. Fidel Castro himself lived in Tivoli for two years when he first came to Santiago to go to school. The house he lived in is unmarked, but can be found facing the Museo de la lucha clandestina.