Blogs such as this generally deal with overseas destinations but that of course assumes that the only people reading this are Irish. Not true! The Travel Bug blog has a diverse and international audience so today I thought that I’d write a few words about where we’re based — in the idyllic seaside village of Dunmore East, Co. Waterford, Ireland. As anyone who lives near the sea will tell you, every day is different — the colours of both the sea and sky can change so dramatically from one day to the next. Dunmore East is a working fishing port — one of the most important in Ireland — and is located just 18 kilometres from Waterford, the regional capital which in turn is just 1.5 hours away from Dublin by motorway. If you want peace and quiet; if you like walking along deserted beaches; if you enjoy good food, then you’ll be coming to the right place. Indeed one of the villages local restaurants — Azzurros — is regarded by celebrity chef Richard Corrigan (he of Bentleys’ Oyster bar in London fame) as offering the best and most authentic pizzas in the world outside of Naples itself.
Dunmore East attracts what i would categorise as an upwardly-mobile sort of clientele although that’s not to suggest that it’s not popular with everyone. Many of Waterford’s merchant class own nice summer homes in the village and usually decamp for the six to eight weeks of what is loosely described as an ‘Irish summer’. The ‘season’ officially starts starts around St. Patricks day and ends in October but it is during the July-August period that the quaint village gets inundated with visitors from all over Ireland (it is particularly popular with tourists from Northern Ireland judging by all the car registration plates) and the UK with the occasional foreign tourist from further afield. Globus also seem to stop a coach there every other day throughout the year as one of the must see ‘stops’ is a visit to ‘Aggies’, a traditional Irish pub, complete with thatched roofs. Speaking of thatched roofs; the village has more than its fair share of them which only adds to Dunmore East’s character and visual appeal. All in all, Dunmore East is a little bit of heaven on earth and somewhere that I’m proud to call home. Check it out, the next time you’re in this neck of the woods.
