A Visit to Lecce

Thursday, October 5, 2023

On the long drive to Otranto (our next major destination), we decided to visit Lecce. 

After driving from Matera over mostly one-way and some two-way roads, we reached Lecce in two hours. Passing slow-driving cars on one-way roads took a lot of work, as most roads were curvy and bumpy.

On reaching Lecce, I parked at the modern Parkejoo parking lot near the old city. It was very convenient and even had bathrooms (much better than parking structures in the United States).

We planned to visit the highlights of Lecce, starting with the Basilica of Santa Croce. On the way there, we noticed a beautiful Giuseppe Garibaldi Public Gardens (Public Park), where we hoped to spend some time later in the day. 

As we walked to the Basilica of Santa Croce, we noticed a small tourist shop offering walking tours of Lecce, and I stopped by to find out more details. We found that an English-speaking tour was available at 16:00, covering major city highlights. After a  short discussion with Inna, we decided to purchase 2 tickets for the tour (20.00 euros/person + church entrance fees)

The Basilica of Santa Croce is supposed to hold wood fragments from the cross on which Jesus was crucified. We saw the relic on display but can't vouch for its authenticity. There are many elaborate carvings on the exterior of the building.

After visiting the Basilica, we stopped for lunch at Cafe Alvino (highly recommended by both Google Maps and the Lonely Planet guide). 

While busy, we found one open table outdoors and sat down. We ordered the following items:

• Boris: Caprese Salad (lots of tomatoes & mozzarella - more significant portion)
• Inna: Burrata E Crudo (Buffalo Mozzarella + Deli Meats)
• Drinks: Caffe Chiaccio Latte di Mando (Iced Cafe with Almond Milk), Cappuccino
• Dessert: Rustico Pasticiotto (with filling)
  

We really liked the Caprese Salad with fresh Italian tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella! The Deli Meats were also quite delicious! The Iced Cafe with Almond Milk was fantastic (The Italian Almond Milk is better than the one in the United States - Italian almonds taste different). The Rustico Pasticiotto was excellent, too, with a delicious filling.

Near Cafe Alvino, we found a partially excavated Roman Amphitheater. Half of the Amphitheater is still buried under the plaza and presumably under the churches nearby. The Roman Amphitheater has been undergoing restoration, and the city of Lecce plans to use it eventually to host concerts.

Our next stop was to visit the Church of Saint Claire. It's one of the multiple small churches in Lecce. In fact, Lecce was known as the city of churches.

We also stopped briefly to admire the Church of St. Matthew. It's another beautiful church with beautiful artwork inside.

As we wandered around, we discovered the Roman Theater. It was found during excavations for laying the foundation of an Italian Bank. (Almost all the significant discoveries occur by accident during excavations).

The Roman Theater was buried under a public garden and is now being restored. Eventually, it will host theater performances.

As the weather was quite hot, we decided to look for a nearby Gelateria to cool off. We located Gelateria Naturale using Google Maps. We ran into Cathedral Maria Santissima Assunta e S. Oronzo on the way there. We decided to stop there before sitting down for a few scoops of gelato.

Unlike other cathedrals, the Cathedral Maria Santissima Assunta was very dark inside. The interior was richly decorated, and we noticed fresh flowers everywhere (We did not know then, but a wedding was planned for that day). We also visited the underground crypt and saw some skulls.

After sitting down and reading about the cathedral on Wikipedia, we walked out. A nearby Bell Tower offered elevator rides to the top for 12.00 euros/person, but we were not too interested. Apparently, elevators were only installed this year. Only recently was there a way to visit the tower.

 

We stopped by  Gelateria Naturale and sampled a few flavors. I decided to be adventurous and try all new-to-me flavors. Inna agreed to stick to her tried and authentic flavors.

• Inna: Pistachio, Grandma's
• Boris: New flavors (I don't recall exact names)
  

Inna's gelato was exceptional, and the pistachio was fantastic. She liked it more than Grandma's. 

 

Lecce is famous for Pasticcioto - a pastry with a delicious filling. Inna wanted to try it, so we decided to try it nearby at Pasticceria Natale. We really liked the pasticcioto! The filling was exceptional.

As we were both tired, we decided to rest for an hour at the nearby Giuseppe Garibaldi Public Gardens. This small but beautiful public park is near the Basilica di Santa Croce. We used the restrooms in the park and relaxed.

At  15:55, we decided to head back to the Basilica di Santa Croce, where we were meeting our tour guide for the 90-minute English-speaking city tour. 

On the walking tour, we briefly stopped at the following places (but we were glad to have visited them on our own earlier to take photos):

• Basilica di Santa Croce
• Special attention to Elaborate exterior carvings
• Some Turkish heads are holding up the building (about the victory over the Turkish invaders)
• Our tour guide pointed out the Sacred Cross, which is supposed to contain a small piece of actual wood from Jesus' cross
  
• Jewish Museum
• Jews were expelled from Lecce in the 1490s and never returned. The synagogue still remains, as do other relics, such as Menorahs.
  
• There are deep baths for Mikvah still there (with water)
  
• Roman Amphitheater
• Church of Saint Claire
• Church of Saint Matthew
• Due to lack of funds, the exterior was left unfinished
  
• Roman Theater
• Cathedral Maria Santissima Assunta e S. Oronzo
• There was a wedding finishing up in the cathedral, and we had to wait before we could enter.
   

After we finished the tour at 17:45, we hurried back to our Opel Astra, as we still had a long drive ahead of us to Otranto. I wanted to avoid driving to a new city over unfamiliar roads at night. After a 15-minute walk, we reached Parkejoo and paid for our parking. We started our drive at 16:20 (later than I would have liked).

I programmed Otranto on my iPhone's Google Maps application, and we started our drive there. Traffic was heavy since it was rush hour, and I made a few incorrect turns on my way out of the city. There are numerous roundabouts, and Google Maps was not providing accurate directions as to which roundabout exit to take.

Eventually, we were able to leave Lecce and get on the freeway to Otranto. It was already getting dark, and the low-beam headlights on the Opel Astra were not providing sufficient illumination. I had to use high beams more often than I would have liked.

We reached Otranto at around 19:20 - about 30 minutes later than I desired. After a few minutes, we found our preferred parking - Parcheggio Sant'Antonio (just outside the old city) - and parked our Opel Astra there. The cost to park was 20.00 euros/day.

We still had to walk about 15 minutes to reach our Hotel Palazzo Papaleo (in the old city) over cobblestone streets, but the road was mostly flat.

Lecce Trip Report

Highlights

• Eating lunch at Cafe Alvino
• Eating gelato at Gelateria Naturale
• Sampling Pasticcioto at Pasticceria Natale
• Visiting the following attractions:
  
• Basilica di Santa Croce
• Jewish Museum
• Roman Amphitheater
• Church of Saint Claire
• Church of Saint Matthew
• Roman Theater
• Cathedral Maria Santissima Assunta e S. Oronzo

Lowlights

• Hot weather
• Traffic on the drive out of the city