Erika's place has lots of virtues and drawbacks. If the drawbacks don't bother you, you'll love it. The virtues: the neighborhood is great--pleasant little houses, quiet, close to BART and great ethnic restaurants. The house is typical old character-rich Berkeley cottage. Erika works hard to make sure everything is good for you. The room is comfy, with lots of little perks like a portable space heater. The drawbacks are: 1) there is no place to park--all the surrounding area is 2-hour only for non-residents. If you have no car, this is not an issue. Erika says there is all-day parking a couple of blocks away, but those streets fill with BART commuters by 8 am. 2) The kitchen is unusable for anything other than microwaving food from outside. Again, if you don't want to cook this may not be an issue. 3) Erika has a rescue dog who is so traumatized that he goes into a barking frenzy every time you enter the living room, which is unavoidable. Again, if you're a dog sympathizer this may actually be a plus.