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These Photos Of Borscht Belt Ruins Changed My Life

JL;DR SUMMARY Marisa Scheinfeld's journey through the Borscht Belt, once a vibrant Jewish American vacation destination in New York's Catskills, is captured in her book, "The Borscht Belt: Revisiting the Remains of America's Jewish Vacationland." A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Cultural HistoryAmerican JudaismMemoryBorscht BeltPhotographyCatskillsArchitectureMarisa ScheinfeldJewish VacationlandDecay

Places mentioned

Monticello, New York, United States
"Bungalows, Breezy Corners, Monticello, New York Image by Marisa Scheinfeld"
New York, United States
"The Borscht Belt was a predominantly Jewish American vacation destination located 90 miles from New York City in Sullivan and Ulster Counties."
Wawarsing, New York, United States
"The following decades were spent at a bungalow colony in Wawarsing and another colony, known as Rosmarins, which is still open."
Kiamesha Lake, New York, United States
"In 1986, my father accepted a job and moved our family up to the Catskills, the town of Kiamesha Lake, NY."
New York City, New York, United States
"The Borscht Belt was a predominantly Jewish American vacation destination located 90 miles from New York City in Sullivan and Ulster Counties."
New Jersey, United States
"For future speaking engagements in Westchester, NY, New Jersey, Maryland, the Catskills, and Long Island, check the books website."
Maryland, United States
"For future speaking engagements in Westchester, NY, New Jersey, Maryland, the Catskills, and Long Island, check the books website."
Catskills, New York, United States
"Though my topic is the history of the Borscht Belt, my photographs examine its history though a very contemporary lens."

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Retrieved 2025-11-14 05:31:44 UTC
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