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California Vacations Berkeley
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Considered by many to be the most progressive city in the United States, Berkeley is home to the University of California, Berkeley which traces its origins back to 1868. The city is located directly across the bay from the Golden Gate. The Berkeley scene of today still shows signs of its involvement in the political turmoil arising from the Free Speech Movement and the hippie culture of the 1960s, followed by the Vietnam War protests of the 1970's. The city has a population of a little more than 100,000 which makes it barely a medium-sized city in California terms. There is an ethnically diverse community, with an increasingly Asian campus and an eclectic mix of cultures and viewpoints. Education, not tourism, is the major industry that underpins the local economy. Berkeley, like the rest of the Bay Area, enjoys a Mediterranean type climate with dry summers and mild, wet winters and gets its share of fog just like all the other bay side communities. The site of the city was the the home of the native Ohlone people at the time the first Europeans arrived with the De Anza Expedition in 1776. The original land grants from that expedition were gradually eroded by wars and land grabs and the original landholders are now only recognized by a few street names. Visitors will find a surprisingly wide variety of things to do in Berkeley, given that this is very much a University town without the backing of a large, well financed tourism corporation. There are plenty of opportunities to explore the vibrant art scene as well as the diverse range of cultural displays and activities. Berkeley is reputed to be the safest city in California for pedestrians and cyclists and has one of the highest rates of bicycle and pedestrian commuting in the nation. The city operates a separate grid of "Bicycle Boulevards" where demarcated bike lanes and restricted car traffic draw traffic away from the major arterial roads. The original roadway grid has been modified using barriers and diverters to move most traffic out of residential neighborhoods and onto arterial streets, and visitors often find this confusing. Anyone planning a self drive stay in Berkley is well advised to use an up-to-date street map. Public transport in Berkeley is via the Bay Area Rapid Transport (BART) network which provides the fastest and most efficient connections to nearby Oakland and across the bay to downtown San Francisco. Anyone considering a car rental for a self drive stay needs to be aware of the very high number of cyclists that share the roads and that parking is limited, and therefore expensive. Being a university town, most of the visitor accommodation is on the outskirts and the neighboring town of Emeryville is the center for most of the available short stay lodgings.
A what's happening in Berkeley schedule of events
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