San Carlo Borromeo Festival and Fair

The patronal feast of Acquarica del Capo

San Carlo Borromeo is the patron saint of Acquarica del Capo, now part of the municipality of Presicce-Acquarica, in the province of Lecce, in the heart of Lower Salento. The feast, celebrated in early November around the liturgical date of November 4th, is the community's most anticipated and identity-defining event: when the 4th does not fall on a Sunday, the festivities are moved to the following Sunday.

The highlight is the solemn procession, which carries the saint's relic through the streets of the historic center, accompanied by a brass band. The streets are adorned with traditional illuminations, an essential backdrop for Salento's patronal feasts, while the squares come alive with performances, street artists, and evening concerts. The event concludes with a spectacular fireworks display that lights up the sky over the town on the final evening.

The historic Market Fair of 1838

Alongside the religious dimension, the feast preserves its historic Market Fair, established by Royal Decree on March 7, 1838, by King Ferdinand II of Bourbon. Once an agricultural and livestock fair, it remains one of the defining features of the event today, with stalls offering local products, handicrafts, and all kinds of goods animating the town during the feast.

Salento traditions and flavors

The San Carlo feast is also a journey through the flavors of the region. The memory of "lu porcu de San Carlo" survives—the pig that was once raised throughout the year and then cooked for the community; this is the origin of today's pork festival held during the feast. The table is accompanied by fresh homemade pasta (orecchiette, gnocchi, maccheroni), seasonal vegetables, and cabbage soup. There is also a dessert fair, featuring traditional sweets, tastings of typical Salento products, and a charity market run by volunteers.

A community heritage

Until the 1980s, the focareddha also survived—a large bonfire lit on the eve of the feast using wood collected from the countryside. Today, the San Carlo Borromeo Festival and Fair remains the most important event in Acquarica del Capo: a blend of faith, rural memory, and conviviality that brings together the town's residents and those from neighboring Salento municipalities every year.