Berkeley is a small city of approximately 100,000 residents.  It is well known because of the University of California, and its intense political history.  It is also a highly desirable place to live because of the charm of its neighborhoods, the great shopping, live theatre, many cinemas and wonderful restaurants.  It is a city that hasn’t grown much in the past fifteen or twenty years, and may continue to stay the same size that is now.  It has some excellent private schools, and some of its public schools are pretty good.  Berkeley High School is quite large, and offers many outstanding programs for students who are interested and qualified.  Alice Waters of Chez Panisse fame, has involved herself in Martin Luther King, public middle school’s lunch program.  The goal is organic healthy food the students will eat, and be part of their education.  Berkeley has wonderful parks, both small local parks, and the large Tilden Regional Park.  There are two botanical gardens:  UC Botanical Garden, and Tilden Park’s Botanical Garden.  The Lawrence Hall of Science offers science classes and exhibits for all ages.  There are some public swimming pools, many bicycle riders, and is just a great place to live. There are numerous neighborhoods.  There are the Berkeley hills northeast of the University, and reaching up to Tilden Park.  Tilden Park has Lake Anza for swimming, the Botanical Gardens, (many weddings are held here), the merry-go-round, and the animal farm and science center.  The homes in the hills often have spectacular views, and the area has great charm and peaceful quiet.  For the most part, the homes in the hills vary from older homes built in the 1920’s and 1930’s to newer homes built in the 1960’s and 1970’s.  The rest of Berkeley has mostly older homes built in the early twentieth century through the 1940’s.  North Berkeley has Thousand Oaks district, north of Solano Avenue, on the Kensington border.  It is charming and peaceful and convenient to Solano’s amenities.  Northwest Berkeley has great areas with mostly smaller homes, but lots of charm and convenience to BART.  Fourth Street has developed into a shopping and dining destination.  The homes nearby are popular because of easy access.  Central Berkeley is near the University and Berkeley High and Downtown Berkley.  It has charm, and is wonderful for walking to the shopping, live theater, and restaurants in the downtown area.  The Elmwood district has mostly larger, statelier homes.  It is highly desirable because of its charm, and access to the shopping and amenities of College Avenue.  The Claremont District has even larger homes, and is highly desirable for the same reasons as the Elmwood.  It is located between Elmwood and Oakland’s Rockridge, near the famous Claremont Resort Hotel.  This hotel is a World-class hotel, with spa, swimming pool, gym, tennis courts, great charm and wonderful restaurants.  South Berkeley has been the more affordable part of Berkeley, and border’s North Oakland. It has La Pena Cultural Center where wonderful performances are often on a regular basis.  Some of the Bay Areas best Flamenco and Salsa shows occur at La Pena.  West Berkeley is a mixture of light industrial, apartments and single-family homes, lots of artist studios, the acclaimed Fantasy Studios, some restaurants, and nurseries, and more.  Berkeley has a variety of neighborhoods, as well as some good diversity of people which offers increases its richness.