Wednesday's sundown marked the beginning of the eight-day festival of Passover, during which Jews will give up eating bread.

Matzah, an unleavened bread, is eaten instead to remind Jews of the slaves who didn't have enough time to let the bread rise before fleeing Egypt.

Passover, or Pesach in Hebrew, celebrates the Jews' exodus from Egypt. The holiday involves a seder, a meal in which the important historical event is retold from Torah passages.

Penn State has about 5,000 Jewish students, said Rabbi David E. Ostrich of Congregation Brit Shalom, 620 E. Hamilton Ave. He said his is State College's only synagogue, and it has about 350 members. There may be another 600 to 1,000 local Jews who don't belong to the synagogue, he added.

For Jews who observe Passover, State College stores offer a great amount of kosher food options, he said.

"Wegmans and Giant Food Store both have really good selections, and Weis Market does, too," Ostrich said. "I've been in smaller towns where it actually has been difficult, but here there's a lot of availability."

He said the Penn State dining commons have also greatly improved their selection of foods that accommodate the needs of Muslims and Jews.

"Penn State's been really good about looking out for the students," he said.

Waring Square in West Halls will feature a kosher menu for Passover buffet today through April 16, said Lisa Wandel, associate director of Penn State Food Services. Lunch will be all dairy, and dinner will include baked chicken and matzah ball soup. The meals will also offer more desserts this year.

"Desserts were like crazy last year," Wandel said. "They couldn't get enough desserts. We couldn't keep up."

Waring is the only commons that will have full-scale Passover meals, though the other dining halls will have staples like matzah throughout Passover.

But for some students, celebrating the holiday while living on campus has proved to be a challenge.

Andrea Haislup (junior-psychology), a teacher at Congregation Brit Shalom, had difficulty finding food without bread in it last year on campus, she said.

"I wish it were easier but you can only do what you can do. This year I will bring back foods from home," she said.

Though homemade holiday foods are ideal for many Jews, some downtown stores promise to do their best to cater to those observing Passover.

Irving's, 110 E. College Ave., will have matzah as an option throughout the holiday to accommodate Jewish customers, co-owner Marya Schoenholtz said.

"We don't see any change in business one way or another. You think you'd see a little bit of a decrease. We don't really see that change," she said.

Still, students craving more than matzah think leaving State College for their families' seders is a worthwhile journey.

Rachel Parkes (sophomore-elementary education), another Congregation Brit Shalom teacher, will make the four-hour trip to her hometown in Rockland County, New York.

"For me it's a big family holiday and it's absolutely worth going home. Plenty of people don't follow Passover but go home to be with their families and stuff," she said.

Parkes thinks it would be hard to observe Passover here, especially for people without cars to go buy Passover foods.

"Passover is a tough holiday to celebrate in general, and definitely when you're in college it's not any easier," Parkes said.

Haislup said she observes the holiday more strictly at home; her mother's home-cooked food serves as a helpful tool.

"There's always food in my kitchen to eat, but when I'm up here if I'm grabbing a quick sandwich I can't eat the bread," she said. "At least you can get a salad that doesn't contain any bread product, but it's really hard when you're eating out."