Explore with Fran : Loving Lecce

The Bel Paese

Leaving Ostuni, we reflected on how different this part of Italy was from what we have travelled through in the North. The land is drier. The coastline is more dramatic. The air smells cleaner. A different Italy. Yet, still the bel paese. The beautiful country. An Italy we love as much as we love the rest of the country. These reflections brought a smile to my face. A smile that only a vacation in Italy can bring. A smile that I taste in the local food. In the wine of the region. And in the people we see as we travel throughout the South.

Florence of the South

Still smiling, we drove to a place we had seen called the “Florence of the South”. Quite the moniker. Would it live up to its billing? Spoiler alert. It did. And then some. Having visited, I wonder if it should be the other way around. That Florence is the “Lecce of the North”. Lecce was a revelation. Such a stunning city. If you haven’t visited, start making your 2025 holiday plans.

Our Lecce plans would start at our accommodation, which was a typical Italian bed and breakfast in the city centre. What is a “typical” bed and breakfast in an Italian city? You walk down a residential side street, cars haphazardly parked, at least I think they are parked, on either side of the street. A street full of dated apartment buildings. The usual cafes and bars, with groups of men sat around drinking espresso. You arrive at a nondescript large door, with a number of brass calling buttons.

This is where we are staying? On our holiday! I used to doubt myself when arriving at such places. Are we at the wrong address? It doesn’t look like there would be any bed and breakfast here. In this building? Often, even getting through the big door, I am still unsure. Nothing suggests that after going up three floors in an old rickety elevator, and entering the door that is subtly advertised with the name of the bed and breakfast, a beautiful space opens up.

More on that elevator. This particular one looked so old, that Victoria refused to get in with me. Oh yes, she was happy that I got in, and risked my life. With the bags. I could hardly close the old doors. It was a tight squeeze. There was a lot of rattling. Victoria turned and left me struggling. She would see me, hopefully, in a few minutes once she dashed up the stairs.

Duolingo and a bit of sign language

We both made it. And entering the apartment that obtained the bed and breakfast, we did indeed see a beautiful space. The space being a large room dominated by a perfectly laid out dining table. I knew where breakfast would be in the morning. We were met by a very friendly host. A host that spoke very little English. My Duolingo practice only got us so far. Smiles and body language got us the rest of the way. With our Fiat 500 safely tucked away in the underground garage for a couple of days, it was time to head out and explore Lecce.

Exploring the baroque architecture of Puglia

And where better to start than the old town, a 10 minute stroll from our accommodation. Entering via one of the four very imposing Roman gates that circle the city. Ambling through Porta Rudiae, we had discovered, as we had very early in this Puglia adventure, not much happens in the middle of the day in these parts. And Lecce, despite being a major city, was no exception. At times it felt like we had the city to ourselves. Turning a quiet corner we found ourselves awestruck. Stood staring at the ornate, and very beautiful Basilica di Santa Croce. This, my friends, is why Lecce often gets compared to Florence. Buildings of such beauty. There are some of the finest examples of Baroque architecture that you will find in the whole of Italy.

The Piazza del Duomo is breathtaking. We have seen a lot of piazzas. And not just on this trip. The one in Lecce is stunning. We also have the Roman Amphitheatre. Then, the Roman Theatre. Yes, Lecce has both, and I was also confused about the difference. Simple explanation is that a theatre has a one sided view of the stage, and an amphitheatre has all round views of the stage. Both are worth checking out and it is stunning to think that the amphitheatre was hidden, and not known about until the early 1900s as workers were excavating for a new Bank of Italy building.

Museo Faggiano

A very similar story can be found not too far away. At the Museo Faggiano. In 2001, Luciano Faggiano was undertaking some work to fix a broken sewer pipe. In preparation for his planned trattoria on the site. Through this work, and over several years, he ended up with a museum, not a restaurant. It turns out that his property was a Templar home from 1000 to 1200. And, up to 1600 it was a Convent of Franciscan Nuns. The excavation work brought to light tombs, cisterns, a well, templar frescos, an ossuary, underground escape ways, more than 5000 archaeological finds and other incredible things. A wonderful place to explore for the paltry cost of 5 euros.

Cooling down in Lecce

Exploring done for a while, we needed to sit down. And have a cold drink. Not as easy as it sounds when everything closes between the hours of 2pm and 7pm. We did find a cafe open, and the customer service suggested that having a monopoly on the afternoon trade was something that he took for granted. Sipping up swiftly we decided it was time for our siesta.

But, not before fulfilling a tradition I started many years ago, in a country I can no longer remember. With a final check of Google Maps, I discovered that where I needed to be was actually on the walk back to the B&B.

Mission accomplished…

The evenings in Lecce might just be perfect. The temperature is a lot more comfortable than the searing daytime heat. The numerous baroque buildings are lit up. And all the bars and restaurants have opened. There are more people. Lecce now feels busy. The streets actually look different.

“Didn’t we walk down here today?”

“Yeah, and every building looked empty.”

“Where did these dozens of restaurants appear from?”

Apparently, we weren’t the only people having a siesta this afternoon. Now, we were spoiled for choice on where to have our apertivo. And our biggest problem would be to narrow down the dozens and dozens of restaurants to just the one we were going to eat at tonight. Taking a chance on a place that looked quiet, but had the all important local dish, Orecchiette con cime di rapa, we took a seat. As we raised our wine glasses, chilled Pugliese local wine from the cute little carafe on the table, we said a hearty “salut”, and shared the three things that we were grateful for that day.

Reflections of Lecce

And as I tucked into my pasta dish of broccoli tops and breadcrumbs, I reflected that we had a lot to be grateful for. Lecce had been a revelation. Another highlight to add to our growing list of places in Puglia that we would definitely like to return to. We still had another day to explore Lecce, and a night to try dinner somewhere new, and I knew that it was another place that I would be sad to leave.

We will miss the Florence of the South.