According to witnesses, Manu and Polina met outside the synagogue in Jaffa on a Friday night, and continued to a mutual friend's Shabbat dinner where they barely spoke. But Manu couldn't get Polina off his mind! Shortly after, he discovered that she had published a personal ad in The Free Press' Cupid section. He decided to shoot his shot, and sent her an email. Polina was intrigued, and agreed to go on a date. But it wasn't until a few dates in that Manu demonstrated his Latino meat cooking skills, and incidentally sawed (yes, with a saw) a giant brick of frozen homemade chicken soup in half, shirtless. Polina was bewildered, shocked, confused, and yes—smitten. So were Polina’s parents, especially after discovering that Manu’s ancestry traces back to Bessarabia—just like much of her family. “You’re probably related!” her mother would exclaim with delight. “Please stop saying that like it's a good thing,” Polina would reply, horrified. With patience, diligence, and a lot of medium-rare steak, Manu pursued Polina until she relented. I mean, how could she not? The guy's got a heart of gold, and besides—their yin and yang was crystal clear. (i.e. He sleeps like the dead through her incessant yapping.) Manu proposed to Polina at the synagogue where they first met. Join them to celebrate real love. It's gonna be a freakin' blast.