Whether you are a culture vulture or a wine connoisseur or a laid-back adventurer—Devon, England, the new arcadian wonderland of the West Country, will sate all your travel cravings.
For those lusting after idyllic charm will find peace in its craggy mainland, while those hankering for the good old seaside languor will fall head over heels with its crystal-clear waters.
From the much-loved cream tea to the iconic pasty, Devon boasts a smorgasbord of culinary marvels that draws gastronomes from all over the world. Tap forward to know some more exciting things about Devon, England.
#1: Devon gets its name from 'defena', an Old English word that was used to identify the territory of the Dumnonii—a Celtic tribe that inhabited the region many, many moons ago.
#2: Devon holds the distinction of being the only place in England to have the longest network of roads that are stretched over 8,000 miles.
#3: Serving as an enduring geological record of Earth's prehistoric past, the Jurassic Coast is an immaculate expanse of coastline spread over 95 miles from Devon to Dorset. It is the only natural World Heritage Site of England.
#4: Parliament Street in Exeter, Devon, is every claustrophobe's nightmare. About 2 meters wide, it takes the title of being the narrowest street in the world!
#5: A perennial classic, the Cornish pasty, doesn't come from Cornwall as the name suggests. The pasty's birthplace, as historians claim, based on a historic document is, in fact, Devon.
#6: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's much-loved crime novel "The Hound of the Baskervilles" unfolds in the enigmatic misty moorland of Dartmoor.
#7: The little village of Combe Martin is known for hosting long and lavish parties, quite literally. Its 1.5-mile long street turns into a stage for celebrations—a lively spectacle that gained it the recognition from the Guinness Book of World Records.
#8: There's a pretty coastal village in Devon that includes an exclamation mark in its name. It gets its name from Charles Kingsley's novel, Westward Ho!
#9: The energetic dog breed of Jack Russell Terrier was bred by a Dartmouth native, Reverend John Russell.
#10: Dartmouth in Devon, England is the hometown of Thomas Newcomen, the creator of the steam engine. The original groundbreaking contraption by the inventor sits in The Engine House in Dartmouth.
#11: Heavitree in Exeter, Devon is believed to be the last site in England where those practicing Witchcraft were executed in the 17th century.
#12: There's a rather dangerous and crazy custom observed in the East Devon village of Ottery St. Mary, where veteran villagers set barrels of tar ablaze, carry them on their shoulders, and dart through the streets.
#13: Devon is surprisingly radioactive and not because it houses a nuclear plant but because of its granite and soil which gives off radon, an odourless gas naturally produced by the decay of uranium.