Going back to Ardmore: From first love, lasagne and tinnies on the beach to cliff walks and five-star dining, the sunny south east still thrills

Going back to Ardmore: From first love, lasagne and tinnies on the beach to cliff walks and five-star dining, the sunny south east still thrills

To get to Ardmore, Co Waterford, from Dublin in the 1980s and 1990s felt like a mammoth task. It meant driving through ­several towns and villages – ­Kilkenny (stopping in Langtons Hotel for a bowl of soup), through Thomastown, Callan, Knocktopher and Dungarvan before finally arriving in the fishing village, where complete freedom awaited me.