Virtual U.S. Road Trip- Day 8 - Delaware & #Giveaway

Yesterday we where in Connecticut with author Kourtney Heintz , check out her post along with a giveaway here

Today is day 8, on our road trip and we are in Delaware with booktuber Samantha @ thoughts on tomes. I am so excited to have Samantha on my blog. I discovered her youtube videos a few months back and loved them. Over to Samantha:

Some of you may be asking, Delaware…. where is that? Good question. I couldn’t have identified it on a map until I moved to the east coast 3 years ago from Illinois. I’ve now been living in Delaware for the past 2 years. While I’m no expert, Delaware is very small (the second smallest state after Rhode Island, and we only have one area code!)

Places to go:

While Delaware isn’t known for much, we do have the advantage of a lot of beaches. Whether you are into a more rugged beach experience (such as the horseshoe crab migration every year) or a picturesque boardwalk (like Rehoboth Beach), Delaware has both to offer without all of the crowds found on the Jersey Shore.

We are also home to a few historical sites, as Delaware is proudly the First State, as well as home to one of the largest Air Force bases on the east coast.

Rehoboth Beach
John Dickinson Plantation in Dover, DE
Air Mobility Command Museum in Dover, DE

Places to eat:

Again, is Delaware known for their culinary prowess? I doubt it. But we really know our sea food. One of my favorite places to go is a locally owned tavern called Sambo’s Tavern, located in small town Leipsic, DE. It is known for it’s seafood, but mostly crabs which you can order by the half dozen. This isn’t Red Lobster, and you have to break into those bad boys yourself, but the reward is so worth it. The experience puts Crab Fest to shame. The tavern is only open during the summer months (seafood season), so we make sure to go at least twice a month to get our fill before it hibernates for the winter.

If getting your hand’s dirty isn’t your thing (even for the sake of delicious crab meat!) then there are plenty of other places Delaware has to offer:

Roma’s in Dover, DE (some of the best Italian food I’ve ever had!)
The Melting Pot in Wilmington, DE
The Pig + Fish in Rehoboth, DE

Book related:

Sadly, with how small Delaware is, there have not been a lot of book related things to come out of this state. Of the authors I was able to find, and the list was short, and none were names that I recognized. Also, very few books have been set here. The small list of books I recognized:

Dear John by Nicholas Sparks
Hawkes Harbor by S.E. Hilton
Beloved by Toni Morrison (Beloved takes place in numerous locations, but Delaware is one of them)

Ah, such is the struggle of a small state. Nevertheless, Delaware has a lot to offer, especially in the summer months. It’s location allows us to live away from the big city noise, while still being just a short car ride from major cities like Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C.

I hope you learned a little bit about a little known state! Thank you Megan for the invite!

Thoughts On Tomes * Twitter * Instragram

Thanks Samantha. I didn't realise Delaware was so small, but it's sounds awesome none the less.

Check out Day nines stop in Florida with author Michelle Madow here

Follow all the road trip posts here

Giveaway #2

*This is the second sponsored giveaway by me. I am offering three giveaway's throughout the 50 stops. The first giveaway is with the Arkansas post and the last one will be with the Louisiana post*

You can win ONE of the above books. I have read all these books this year and loved them. They where all 5 star reviews. Giveaway is open to anyone that can receive books VIA the book depository. Giveaway Ends 8th August 2015.

All The Bright Places is a YA Contemporary that explore's first love and mental illness.

Vendetta is a YA thriller full of romance and drama, it's a modern Romeo and Juliet.

The 5th Wave is a YA sci-fi book that I loved so much. If you have read the first book you can choose the second book The Infinite Sea

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