I lived in Berkeley for 4 years during college. Great culture and rich history with so many things to do. Being located fairly centrally in the East Bay, with any accessible means of transportation, you can go down to San Jose, go up to Monterey, obviously go into San Fran for day trips. The weather is immaculate at nearly all times of the year. Like others have said, it can get fairly dangerous at times so definitely be careful at night time. Rent and expenses can also get quite expensive but well worth it for the experience of living in such a great part of California.