Photos of Nava de Béjar (Salamanca) (January 2017) (part 1)

=> Photos from January 2017 (since I don’t remember the exact date, I have put an approximate date for the photo session)

Nava de Béjar is a locality and a municipality in the southeast of the province of Salamanca, in Castilla y León (Spain, Europe). It is part of the comarca of the Sierra de Béjar. It belongs to the judicial district of Béjar, the judicial party number 4 of the province of Salamanca, and is also part of the municipal associations of Embalse de Béjar and Pantano de Santa Teresa.

It has a population of 76 inhabitants (according to INE data for the year 2023) and an area of 11.73 km².

I have been spending summers (and even some winters) in this little village since I was 4 years old. Although at first glance it seems like a practically uninhabited village and for many even 'lifeless', for me it has become my blessed and sacred holiday village and my personal paradise. Thanks to this blessed village, I now support rural areas and the fight against depopulation. This village has stolen my heart.

The beautiful parish church is dedicated to Saint Dominic de Guzmán, it is from the 12th century and is in the Salamanca Romanesque style. The patron saint of Nava de Béjar, much loved and venerated by all the neighbors and visitors, is Saint Dominic de Guzmán, who rests in the main altarpiece of his own parish church. Its patronal festivals, in honor of Saint Dominic de Guzmán, are celebrated during the first two weeks of August; although what are really the celebrations last five days, usually extending from August 3 to 7 (regardless of whether they fall on a weekend or a weekday), with the main day (the day of the solemn mass and procession) on August 4 and the proclamation day on August 3; the remaining days of those first two weeks of August are actually cultural and sports activities held as part of the patronal celebrations.

And for those who enjoy museums, I must say that in this small village of just 76 inhabitants there are 3 museums (two of them are private but can be visited by making an appointment with the owner in advance). The 3 Nava museums are the Parish Museum (private museum owned by Fidel Hernández Benjumeda, secretary of the Brotherhood of Saint Dominic de Guzmán; located in the former baptistery of the Parish Church of Saint Dominic de Guzmán), the Permanent Photography Exhibition of Nava de Béjar (museum open all year round with free entry; located in the main hall of the Town Hall building; opening hours coincide with those of the Town Hall and Municipal Secretariat), and the Tío Tararira House-Museum (private museum also owned by Fidel Hernández Benjumeda; located in the inner courtyard of Fidel's house, in the Plaza de las Escuelas (part of Calle Pocillo); this is an ethnographic museum, as it shows how a traditional navera dwelling looked from the 18th to the 20th century).