Shows conform to holy day needs

GHENT, BELGIUM — Recognizing that Decosit and DecoContract in Brussels coincide with Rosh Hashana, one of the major Jewish religious holidays, the management has made arrangements for hotel accommodations, religious services and kosher food during this period.

Textirama, the organizer of the textiles shows, has blocked hotel rooms in Brussels City, some only a five-minute walk from the Great Synagogue, according to Patrick Geysels, director. Avraham Guigui, the synagogue's chief rabbi, will assist in the religious obligations during this period, Geysels added.

In addition, Decosit has made arrangements for kosher food to be available at a dedicated location at the Brussels Expo, the site of the exhibition during the whole period, and arrangements can be made to have kosher food delivered to other locations.

"We are doing everything we can to diminish the impact of the situation," Geysels remarked. "We regret the unfortunate coincidence with the timing of the religious holidays. We attempted to change the dates, but because of the tightly scheduled Brussels fairgrounds, we had no options or alternatives."

Geysels urges anyone wanting assistance with hotels near the synagogue or wanting to make arrangements for kosher food to contact them by fax at (011) 32-9-2438455.