The Fêtes de Wallonie in Namur are now well underway and are regarding to get to the heart of the matter this weekend. This Saturday promises to be a particularly busy day, here are some highlights you can expect.
If the “Wallos” are first and foremost a popular festival, they are also punctuated by more official moments. Thus, at 11 a.m., Mayor Maxime Prévot will deliver his traditional political speech in the Jardins du Maieur (City Hall) while the Walloon institutions are shaken by accusations of moral harassment once morest the Clerk of Parliament Frédéric Janssens.
This day will also be historic for Namur folklore as it will see for the very first time an exclusively female stilt joust. Fifteen women aged 11 to 43 will attempt to write history by becoming the first to win the diamond stilt. Kick-off at 3:30 p.m. on the Place du Théâtre.
Nautical jousting will also be organized on the Meuse between 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. and the public can easily attend from the esplanade and the Confluence stairs.
It is also on Saturday that the Walloniades are usually held, a competition of ancient games during which teams representing the different villages of the Namur entity compete. First rounds from 1 p.m. on Place Saint-Aubain.
To celebrate the 35th anniversary of its existence, the College of Namur District Committees (CCQN) will set the world record for the longest avisance, this local culinary specialty consisting of puff pastry stuffed with meat. Objective: to reach 120 meters in length. Avisance will be cooked by ITCA butcher students and sold to the public for charity. Homologation of the record and tasting at the end of the followingnoon.
The evening will be illuminated by a large fireworks display with contained noise fired from the heights of the Citadel of Namur at 9:50 p.m. It will not be possible to attend from l’Enjambée, the cyclo-pedestrian bridge over the Meuse will remain closed from 6:00 p.m. to avoid any concentration of crowds at this location.
Concerts
Once the Walloniades competition is over, Place Saint-Aubain will come alive with concerts organized by the RTBF every day. Two local talents will open the evening, DJ Bardy at 7:30 p.m. and singer from Namur Claire Laffut at 8:30 p.m. The long-awaited headliner Bénabar will follow at 9:45 p.m. and the Liège group Ykons at 11:30 p.m.
