BRONX SCENE
Jack Sauter pens ‘All the Points of the Compass’
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, N BTR OVEMBER 8-14, 2019 75
When Jack Sauter left the comfort
of his Bronx home to join the navy, he
hoped to sail the oceans of the world
but never dreamed that it would begin
a travel odyssey that would last 60
years.
His initial sailing aboard the carriers
USS Midway and the USS Lake
Champlain took him across more than
one ocean and to over twenty nations
when he served in the Korean War but
that was only a beginning.
In the meantime, his sweetheart
back in Throggs Neck was anxiously
awaiting his return and when he did
come home, wedding plans were made
and the happy couple was soon wed.
It wasn’t long before the plans were
made for a protracted voyage across
the Atlantic. It included shipping their
car to Europe and then spending seven
weeks traveling the back roads of the
REPRINTED FROM 2-17-2011
continent in their 1957 Dodge.
Since they only had a short time to
spend in Italy, they returned the following
year for another fi ve week odyssey
in that country and, after sixty
years, they haven’t stopped traveling
yet other than to raise their three children
who joined Jack and Marianne
on many of their trips.
Whether sleeping in a tree house
in Africa or traveling through China
when private cars were a rarity, many
adventures awaited the Sauters as they
leisurely traversed the back roads of
the world.
There was the time armed Gypsy
pirates took over their train to Prague
and then the close encounter when
their ship was berthed adjacent to the
Achile Lauro in Tunis in October of
1985 which, later that same day, was
boarded by the PLO and one passenger
killed and his body thrown overboard.
Then there was the time when their
car with all their possessions was broken
into in Italy or the time in 1971
when their brakes failed on the back
roads of Normandy while on their
way from Limoges to Lourdes enroute
to Spain in their 1969 Chrysler New
Yorker which they brought over for
this trip with their three children.
Excitement and adventure came
far more frequently than in the
planned tour-guided excursions
so popular today. Many of their
trips took place before credit cards
and when borders not only meant
passport checks but also currency
changes. The convenient euro was
a long way from being created and
they’re one couple who can certainly
appreciate the change.
One trip took them along the byways
and highways of Europe with
their three children for nine weeks.
I’ve traveled widely with my children
but still can’t imagine navigating the
back roads of unknown countries with
some unfamiliar languages with two
teenagers and one pre-teen.
Caught in Europe after the 9-ll attack
was just another cruel turn of fate
interrupting what should have been a
pleasant vacation.
Their adventures by auto, train
and ocean liners will bring back many
memories for seasoned travelers. Just
the names of some of the ocean-going
vessels will enkindle fl ames of remembrance
or longing for many.
Among the many ships that carried
them around the world were the
Queen Mary, Oceanic, Queen Mary II,
Michaelangelo, QE II, and so many others.
The less traveled might re-think
their quiet lives and consider the voyage
of a lifetime.
Some trips, however, can never be
made again now that steam trains, for
the most part, have been retired and
many of the storied cruise ships exist
only in old scrapbooks or fast fading
memories.
This book is not a chronology but
rather a fascinating collection of travel
stories and can be ordered from J and
M Publishing at 235 Robby Lane, New
Hyde Park, New York 11040 and the
cost, including postage, is only $28.95.
Be sure to ask for an inscribed copy.
Jack Sauter left the comfort of his Bronx home to join the Navy and see the world but the
Bronx will always be that special place to return to and he enjoys nothing more than having
lunch at City Island or at the Wicked Wolf with old friends. It’s also true when they say
“there’s no place like home.” His new book is titled “All the Points of the Compass” and that
it is. It will keep you enthralled and stir up some wander lust.