NORFOLK, Va. — Sunday evening is the first day of Hanukkah and Hampton Roads residents and temples are getting ready to commemorate the eight-day Jewish celebration.
At Mt. Trashmore in Virginia Beach, Chabad of Tidewater hosted a Chanukah Extravaganza where a giant Menorah was lighted.
In Newport News, there will be a candle lighting at 6 p.m. at 401 City Center Boulevard. The candle will be lighted by different Jewish groups in the community every night until the end of the festival.
Rabbi Israel Zoberman of Temple Lev Tikvah in Virginia Beach lit the first light of Hanukkah at a Menorah made in Israel and transported to The Bishopsgate.
Hanukkah, or "festival of lights," is celebrated with a nightly menorah lighting, special prayers, and fried foods.
It commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire.
Hanukkah ends on the evening of Monday, Dec. 30.
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