The Lecce Easter Monday, also called “riu”, is a typical Salento tradition that is celebrated on the Tuesday after Easter, not on Monday like in the rest of Italy.
While throughout Italy “Pasquetta” coincides with Easter Monday, in Lecce and in many areas of Salento it is also celebrated the following day, called precisely Easter Monday in Lecce or “riu leccese”.
What is Easter Monday like in Lecce?
It is a day of celebration when families and friends gather outdoors, in parks, in the countryside or to the sea. Large picnics and barbecues are organised and traditional dishes are consumed, such as paint, rustici leccesi, frise and many Easter sweets. Leftovers from Easter and Easter Monday are often consumed. Large parties are organised picnic in the pine forests, traditional Salento dishes are eaten and the pizzica.
It is also an opportunity to visit sanctuaries and places of worship, often linked to popular traditions. This second “Pasquetta” is a very heartfelt moment, almost a way to extend the Easter holidays with another day of conviviality and lightheartedness.
A religious tradition
The tradition of celebrating the Tuesday after Easter was born in Salento several centuries ago and is mainly linked to the peasant and religious world. Originally, the families of farmers and shepherds, who often could not participate in the great celebrations of Easter Sunday because they were busy with work, took a extra day of rest on Tuesday. It was a kind of popular “compensation”: a day to be together, eat outdoors and celebrate spring. From a religious point of view, Easter Monday in Lecce is also connected to the rites dedicated to the Madonna or local saints. In many Salento countrysides, in fact, it was a tradition to organize pilgrimages to small rural churches or country sanctuaries. After mass, families stopped in the fields for a rustic lunch, made of simple and genuine foods.
Over time, the Lecce Easter Monday has become a true institution. It is a day that unites religion, nature and conviviality. In some areas of Salento it is said that "without the Lecce Easter Monday, Easter is not over", to underline how important this event is for the life of rural communities.
Main photo: Municipality of Lecce
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