Photos of Nava de Béjar (Salamanca) (July 2023) (part 1)

=> Photos from July 2023

Nava de Béjar is a town and municipality located in the southeast of the province of Salamanca, in Castilla y León (Spain, Europe). It is part of the Sierra de Béjar region. It belongs to the judicial district of Béjar, the judicial district No. 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 from 2023) and a surface area of 11.73 km².

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

The beautiful parish church is dedicated to Saint Dominic de Guzmán, built in the 12th century and in the Salmantine Romanesque style. The patron saint of Nava de Béjar, loved and venerated by all the locals and summer 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, take place during the first two weeks of August; although the actual patronal festivities last five days, usually extending from August 3 to 7 (regardless of whether it falls on a weekend or a weekday), with the main day (the day of the solemn mass and procession) being August 4 and the day of the proclamation on August 3; the remaining days during those first two weeks of August are mostly cultural and sporting activities held as part of the patronal festivities.

And for those who enjoy museums, I must tell you that in this small town of barely 76 inhabitants, there are 3 museums (two of which are privately owned but can be visited by making prior appointments with the owner). The 3 local museums are the Parish Museum (private museum owned by Fidel Hernández Benjumeda, secretary of the Brotherhood of Saint Dominic de Guzmán; located in the old baptistery of the Parish Church of Saint Dominic de Guzmán), the Permanent Exhibition of Photographs of Nava de Béjar (museum open throughout the year with free admission; located in the main lobby of the Town Hall building; its opening hours coincide with those of the Town Hall and Municipal Secretariat), and the Casa-Museum of Tío Tararira (private museum also owned by Fidel Hernández Benjumeda; located in the inner courtyard of Fidel's own house, in the Plazuela de las Escuelas (part of Calle Pocillo); this is an ethnographic type museum, as it shows what a traditional Navera home was like from the 18th to the 20th centuries).