My first bike was a '08 Ninja 250, which I have now passed onto my wife. Good little bike, fun to ride, great on gas (I used 87 except winter storage when I would fill up on 91). Insurance is cheap especially if you buy through private insurance. I think it is about $600/year for my wife with ICBC basic (2 or 3 mill liability) + Beacon comprehensive.
Only complaints I have is it's carbureted and no ABS. For those two reasons, I would also look into the Honda CBR250.
Here is a picture of my very happy wife when she passed her road test last year
