Lu Riu/ The Easter Monday of Lecce

Easter, Easter Monday and, for the people of Lecce, 'Lu Riu'. It is one of the city's oldest and most heartfelt traditions, dating back even to Byzantine rites. The custom of extending the days of the Easter festivities by declining them into open-air picnics has long been hosted in Belloluogo park, where the municipal administration is organising a 10-hour non-stop event, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., full of music, games, guided tours, and entertainment for young and old.

It starts at 9 a.m., with music and entertainment by Giampaolo Morelli and The Les Lesionati, and then the bands from Lecce high schools, united in the Lecce School Sound project, will take the stage. At the same time, children will enjoy magic with Magician Yuri, juggling shows, stilt-walkers, fire-eaters and aerial acrobats by the Tribù dei Sempre Allegri, performances by street artists from Salento with the Gessetti & Straccetti association, workshops and circus performances by the CirKnos circus school, and for the youngest children, mascots of the main cartoon characters.

There are also spaces set up for sports with school teams competing in table tennis, table football and chess. The music, on the other hand, is that of the most genuine Lecce tradition with Enzo Petrachi and his Folkband, from 2 p.m., followed by the concert of Gli Avvocati Divorzisti.

The day's programme also includes a valuable treat. Thanks to the cooperation with the Artwork cooperative, it will be possible to visit the Belloluogo Tower, an example of late Angevin military architecture, which, according to verified sources, was the home in the last years of her life of Maria D'Enghien, Countess of Lecce and Queen of Naples.