nice to see all the great responses! we first took a two week tour which included our air fare and arranged our return for three weeks later...we rented an apt which can be done through AirBnB, **** or Trip Advisor as well as many other sites...we wanted to be close to the school and we are! in the old neighborhood of Firenze where the homes of Michelangelo's family and Verrazzano are just blocks away. with two people sharing expenses it is not bad, much cheaper than a hotel and we can cook, snack, lay around whenever we want
as i am doing right now! when i get back anyone who wants to discuss doing this is welcome to come over and chat!