Oakland County
Oakland County is vast and diverse. It is one of the nation's wealthiest counties, and the site of the world's first enclosed shopping mall (the Northland Center). Many other shopping opportunities abound, including the upscale Somerset Collection and new Great Lakes Crossing. In the southern part of the county, a vibrant restaurant and nightclub scene has sprung up in once-stodgy Royal Oak. North along Woodward Avenue, Birmingham's thriving downtown features upscale shops of taste and variety. In the northeastern part of the county, Auburn Hills is home to the Palace of Auburn Hills, the home of the National Basketball Association's Detroit Pistons. It also has the new Chrysler Technology Center. Nearby in Rochester are Oakland University and its acclaimed Meadow Brook Theatre. In West Bloomfield Township is the deeply moving Holocaust Memorial Center. Each August, the Woodward strip from Ferndale to Pontiac hosts the Woodward Dream Cruise, the world's largest rolling participatory auto show and the ultimate 1950s and 1960s nostalgia trip.