The Catskills may no longer attract sweeping artistic movements; these mountains may no longer be the sojourn of a post-WWII community battered by the horrrors of bigotry. Downtown, in Liberty, or East Falbrook, Kiamesha, or Bethel – you won’t see the glowing marquee of a matinee or the bright lights of kosher restaurants. But underneath the branches of pine and ash trees, you might just be walking on the old remains of a skating rink or olympic swimming pool. If you do, just imagine what it was like years ago, when this place was a seasonal escape from the crowded hustle of New York City.
The Catskills Tamarack Lodge Pool
A Jewish friend from Brooklyn, told me about her parents giving her a photograph of themselves, upon returning from a borscht belt resort. They were dressed to the nines, standing in front of a chain link fence that displayed a prominent sign saying, “WHITES ONLY”.
ReplyDeleteWell she went off on a tirade, ‘how could you do that after all the discrimination our people have suffered, how could you patronize a place like that, etc, etc, etc. When she finally stopped to take a breath after 15 minutes, her mother calmly said, “That’s the tennis courts”.
Hilarious!
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