Hockessin Athletic Club Group Fitness Launch (Guests are free! ) October 17 - 19

I'm a member of Hockessin Athletic club (HAC) and I saw a flier of up coming event.
There will be an event to launch group fitness on October 17 (Friday) through 18 (Saturday) and guests are free !

I like HAC because the facility is clean and new, and  they have great group fitness programs.
I often go to Zumba, Bike2mat (30min bike+ 30min hot yoga), core fusion, Pilates Mat.
If you like to resistance training, you should go Body Pump and Kettlebells.

They should update the info later on their HP or Facebook page.  Check them if you are interested.
Or, I think they will have normal schedule as usual.

Anyway,　I recommend to use steam sauna in locker room when you come. I love it.
Don't forget to bring a padlock to use a locker.

Not only this day, you can also get a One day pass from their HP and if you ask at the front desk, you might get a 5 day pass as well. Ask them if you are interested in.

Enjoy your fitness!!


Hockessin Athletic Club  (HAC)

100 Fitness Way, Hockessin, DE 19707

302-766-7482 

Harry's Seafood Grill

About three weeks ago, I went to Harry's Seafood Grill in Wilmington.
It's located just behind the Wilmington amtrak station.

One of our lunch group member, arranged to have a lunch there.
She often come this beautiful restaurant with her husband, because the seafood and scenery here is very nice.

I got a Harry's 2 course lunch for $15. It's prefix and you can choose an antipasti and a main dish from each two selections.

my antipasti "sashimi"

omlets with sausage

the other  main dish 

Other than 2 course lunch, they have many menus. I saw many people had a sandwich or burger.
One of my friend ordered lobster sand. It looked nice.

Of course, we had desserts as well !! They have paticie and make desserts in the restaurant.

fondant chocolate

key lime mooth

???　I forgot　the name.

To our surprise, the second lady of the united states was there too!
She went through our table with some security guards.
I didn't notice, but one of our friend told us.

That means this restaurant is good enough to come American second lady.
Since the river view was very beautiful and the restaurant has a good atmosphere, I would like to come again when it's good weather.

The next door is food court. There are many small deli there, such as Sushi, Pizza, Thai food, and so on.
There is Harry's seafood grill's sister shop in the food court too.

The parking space become busy especially after 12 o'clock.
You had better go earlier to park your car smoothly.

Harry's Seafood Grill
Address: 101 S Market St, Wilmington, DE 19801
Phone:   (302) 777-1500

Outlet Malls around Deraware

There are 4 outlet malls around Delaware. You can check exact place and address in "Delaware and its suburb useful map".

1.  Tanger Pennsylvinia Lancaster
　　Rockvale Outlets Lancaster

2.  Tanger delaware Rehobath beach

3.  Philadelphia Premium Outlets

As I wrote before, I like Philadelphia Premium Outlets the best.
It has the best selection of shops for women age above 25.

However, for young people, Tanger Outlet in Rehoboth beach seems  good.
Because there is Abercrombie & Fitch. They also have many small kids clothing shops.

The two outlet malls in Lancaster are good for family.
Since Lancaster is famous for Amish, you can enjoy both sightseeing and shopping.

Most products in outlet malls are cheaper than normal price. But sometimes, there are no difference as shops in normal malls.
You need to be careful and to compare prices well.

Bon Appetit Gourmet Food Shoppe

My acquaintance told me that there is a nice bakery run by French couple in Wilmington.
The bakery has nice baguette, and cakes are also delicious.
But he didn't remember the name of the bakery, only knew the place, which is on route 202 and same mall as Chuck E Cheese.
I could find the place by chance, and stopped by for lunch.

Actually, it's not a bakery like what I imagined.  It's a more deli place.
You can have lunch or tea cake there. Of course, you can take them out.
I ordered Mozzarella Special sandwich ($9.5) and it was very good.

Mozzarella Special

Sandwiches

Saladas

I like bread crispy and hard outside and  fluffy inside.
However, I couldn't check the softness of inside the bread this time, since it was sandwich.
They have more menus besides on the pictures.
Soup seemed delicious as well.  Next time, I will try a set pate on bread, comes with soup.

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Bon Appetit Gourmet Food Shoppe
3629 Silverside Road, Wilmimgton DE 19810
(Talleyville Shopping Center)
302-478-4344

Be careful for the time!
Mon-Fri ：9：30-16：00,  Saturday：10：00-15：00, Sunday：Closed

Alapocas Run State Park & Free Summer Taichi Class

Delaware is surrounded so many greens and you might have gone through a park every 20 minutes while you are driving.

I'm going to have a simple introduction about the trail and free summer Taichi class.

I went to Alapocas Run State Park for the first time and saw a flier the picture below.
According to the flier, Gentle Palm Karate Academy offers free Taichi classes during summer.

Taichi is a kind of Chinese martial arts and it's also moving meditation as well.
It's not here, but I'm taking 24 method Taichi lessons in IWC and I enjoy it very much.   

Flier at  Alapcas ball fields

The purpose I visit the park is for running.
Since I applied for the Philadelphia Marathon, I need to practice as much as possible.
It's too hot to run in the daytime, so I was looking for somewhere cool for running.
Besides, this park is close to the International women's club, so it's convenient for me to run after club activity.

【Full page Map (PDF)】 

PDF shows distance of each trail.

Today I stared from Alapocas Ball Fields and run light yellow trail.
It was great run in the wood, because it was cool and the ground was much softer than asphalt road.

I was worried if I would get lost, but if you come twice, it will be OK.
It's great not only for running, but also for walking. I will definitely come again for running.
Besides Alapocas Run State Park, there are many parks in Delaware. You can check them at Wilmington State Parks web site.
They will have free concerts and some other events, don't miss them!

Newark Farmers Maket

Newark Farmers Market is a great place for both foreigners and locals.
Their vegetables and fruits are very cheap, and they have great lineups for import products.

Since the owner is Korean,  Asian food section is particularly rich in recent months.

So many seasonings

Gobou root and gingers 

Tofu is cheap here

Ｕｄｏｎ noodle,  deep filed tofu is my favorite!

Not only Asian foods, but also other international foods are here!!

Of course Mexican foods is major in this shop. They also have great selection of Indian spices.
Vegetables and fruits are very cheap, but you need to be careful when you chose.
Some are not fresh, you must have a good eye to chose products.

Fruits and vegetables are piled

For me, the day I go shopping for Newark Farmers Market is a big cooking day.
Because the vegetables and meats are better to be cooked as soon as possible.

Sometime, I put some vegetable just into refrigerator and 3 days later,  the mold was on the tomato and cucumber.
Many products are cheaper than other shops, but Not everything.
You need to compare each by yourself, especially Commodities long shelf-life.
But I can say Bananas are always the best price here.

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Newark Famers Market
2515 Kirkwood Hwy, Newark, De 19711
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Golf Shops around Delaware

Golf is very popular sports in the U.S. Even small kids plays golf with their family.
However,　playing golf is very expensive in Japan.

Many Japanese people start to play golf after they move to the states.
We also started golf to take this advantage of staying here.

There are three kinds of big golf shops in Delaware.

I went to looking around those three shops.  【MAP】

1．Dick's Sports  　（Map：Ｃ   At Christiana Mall and at 202, same place where Target is) 

This shop is not golf department shop, but it has every kinds of sports goods.
Golf section is bigger than other sports one, but it seems there is no golf professional in the store.

   

2．Golf Galaxy   (Map：Ｂ　Route 58　Located neear Delaware park, same mall with Home depo)

It's a bit small shop, but it has a good product line up.
A Virtua triall hitting machine is  set, you can try clubs before you buy.
There were used clubs as well.

3．Golf Smith   (Map：Ａ　Route 58  North of Golf Galaxy)

It's a biggest store among the three shops. Since there were little customers in the store at that time, clerk helped me a lot.
This shop also has three virtual trial hitting machines.
The line up of used clubs is also the best among the three.
I didn't ask at other shops, but this shop clerk told me that if you don't like the clubs, you can return the product in 30 days with 90% of original price, even if you have used it.

Each shops have different product lineups.
Especially Golf Galaxy and Golf smith are located very close each other, you can go both shops before you shop.
For example, I got Lynx golf set at golf smith, but there was no Lynx set or gloves at Golf Galaxy.

I took golf classes for a year when I was college student. After that, I just played sometimes, but I always used rental clubs.
In Japan, every driving range and golf course has rental clubs and it is very cheap or free for women.
Besides, people live small house and I didn't want to keep a golf set in my room.

On the other hand, Golf is such a common sports in the state, it seems difficult or not cheap to rent a clubs.
I finally bought a golf set at Golf smith.
It was originally $399.99, and the price at the shop was $245, and it was on sale $179.99.
Finally,  there was an additional promotion for Farther's day, and I got it for  $159.99.
What a great saving!!

I'm a beginner, and I'm not sure if I keep playing golf after I go back to Japan.
So I bought an inexpensive golf set. I went to driving range with this set, and it worked well.
I'm very satisfied with this set and the price. It's not a great clubs, but enough for beginners.
I will keep practicing with this set, and I hope one day, I will feel this club is not good for me.
Because it's a proof that my skill has improved.

2ND&CHARLES @ Newark

Today, I found a great second hand shop in Newark by chance.

The name is 2ND & CHARLES.  It's on route 58.

Although it's a second hand shop, inside the shop is very cozy and filled with many treasures.

Doctor who goods.

 American comics

Many DVDs including Japanese animations.

Many Japanese comic books !!

I was so excited while I was looking around the shop.
They are also selling used i-phone and game soft, children's books, Records, guitars, and so on.

You can't find these great variety of comics and books and DVDs at the same time in any other place in Delaware!!

Hockessin Library also has many collections of Japanese and American comics.

If you are a cartoon lover, you should visit Hockessin Library as well !!

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2ND&CHARLES

101 Geoffrey Drive Newark DE 19713

302-737-4306

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Visit Wilmington.com

I have been in the states for 14 months.
However I've never checked any blogs about Delaware Written in English, ever since I started to write a blog in English.

I'm soooo regret it. I should have checked the blog earlier !
That blog covers everything about Wilmington and around here.
You can find many up coming events, too.

My blog covers more detailed information, and it's especially for foreigners.
So please check both of us.

VisitWilmingtonDE.com

Places For Kids

◆Place for kids to play


【Accommodations】

・Delaware Children's Museum（DCM）
Indoor accommodation to do handicraft. For kids age 2-5 year-old.

・Longwood gardens　
Inside a green house, there is a place to play with water.
Thomas train runs from October to January.

・Brandywine Zoo　　
A small zoo, but the size is nice for a picnic.
You can see beautiful cherry blossoms at river side in spring.

・Delaware State Parks　　
Some places have canoe, and beach in summer, and you might take a straw carry tracks.
In summer evenings, several kinds of concert is held regularly.

・Adventure Aquarium
An aquarium which you can touch fish.
There aren't big fish though, it's a good exhibition for small kids.

・Please Touch Museum　　
An astronaut's exhibition and a maze motif of Alice in wonderland.
This place is good for kids age 5 years and more.

・Philadelphia Zoo
The oldest zoo in the U.S. But it's a normal zoo.

・Franklin Institute　　　
Scientific museum for kids older than elementary school.

・Herr's Snack Factory Tour
Even the adult can enjoy the tour. You can taste fresh-flied potato chips.


【Amusement grounds】

・Cherry Crest Farm　　　
A huge trampoline, a slider, an area to touch animals, your kids will have so much fun!

・Dutch Wonderland　
There are many playground equipment for kids from preschool kids to elementary second year kids. 

In fall, it opens from noon to night. Check the time on website.

・Sesame place　 　　
Theme park of Sesame street. Pools take a half of the park. 

Enjoyment for kids reduces except for summer season, but the entrance fee will reduces too.


【Farms】… Besides fruit picking and vegitable picking, they also hold season events.

・Milburn Orchard　…Elkton, MD

・Fifer Orchard　　 …Wyoming, DE

・Ramsey's farm　 …Wilmington, DE

・Linvilla Orchards　…Media, PA

The Delaware and its suburb useful Map

This map is pointed many useful landmarks and shops.

You can find the same places which are on the Useful Links.

 The Delaware and its suburb useful map