Chanukat HaBayit

Well sort of…

The new Beit Jewlicious was recently most stylishly and joyously inaugurated. Thanks to a lovely gift of a gorgeous Mezuzah by Genya, yours truly, along with Talya and Leia, added the last remaining piece to the new digs. Genya is now back in Chicago, reunited with her colleagues at the Chicago Hillel as well as with her fiance Slava, but before she left, we lit the Chanukiah and mounted the Mezuzah – always a joyous occasion! Check it out:

Now don’t get too excited. Beit Jewlicious isn’t some new project funded by a broad coalition of Jewish philanthropies! It is however the Israel base of all things Jewlicious. Scores of Jewy Web sites have already been launched from here, loads of advice has already been dispensed to numerous Jewish start ups and many hours have been spent planning and discussing the Jewlicious Festival. Beit Jewlicious contains two loft bedrooms and lots of room so while it’s not a hotel per se, lots of different people have already stayed here over shabbat or for slightly longer stays. Need a place to crash in Jerusalem? Well I guess you can call me up, but if there’s no room or you are looking for something a tad more luxurious, then I suppose you can just look for Hotel rooms in Israel. But will there be the same unbridled joy? The boundless love? The goofy characters? The proximity to the shuk? I don’t know. Find out and tell me!

What we don’t have anymore is morning shuk noise, smelly cats, bizarre odors and shady characters lurking in the stairwell. So if you ever find yourself in Jerusalem by the shuk, look me up. And don’t forget to kiss the Mezuzah!