Chaplin In Pictures

Mrs. TBF had to go to Nyon on bidness this past Tuesday. She asked me if I wanted to tag along, so I cleared my busy schedule and joined her. She took an early train directly to Nyon. I, on the other hand, ended up taking a direct train to Lausanne (not too far from Nyon) around noon because I wanted to check out the Chaplin in Pictures exhibit at the Musée de l'Elysée.
I arrived in Lausanne around 2:15 and walked across the street from the train station only to find that the Lausanne Metro was completely shut down for, apparently, a complete rebuilding. The Metro line in Lausanne is pretty interesting. Unlike Metros in most cities which are a complex network of multiple lines, the one in Lausanne is very simple - a straight line up a hill, and a straight line back down the hill. Oh well...I had fortunately had the foresight to print a map of the museum's location, and I decided to hoof it.
The walk to the museum wasn't too long, but I had somehow overlooked the fact that it was FREAKING HOT OUTSIDE. I'm talking blazing sunshine pounding off my chrome dome with temperatures of 33˚C (over 90˚F). It was only about a twenty minute walk, and I'm sure it would have been enjoyable if it had been a nice, crisp autumn day. However, being the mid-afternoon cauldron of hell that was, it turned out to be a fairly unpleasant experience. By the time I made it to the museum (located right by a taunting public swimming pool), sweat was running down my back, my shirt had a big sweat stain right under my chest (I call this "old man sweat" by the way), I was on my second "mopping the brow" handkerchief, and I could feel sweat trickling into my ears under my iPod earphones. In case you're wondering...I took the pit-sniff test, and I'm happy to report that I did not stink!
I slogged up the walkway toward the museum, and I was alarmed to see that the WINDOWS WERE OPEN. NO AIR CONDITIONING??? It's a photography museum for God's sake. Anyway, I stepped inside, found that it was a bit cooler inside than it was outside, paid my 15 Francs, picked up a free exhibit brochure making the claim that "Charlie Chaplin was the 20th century's most popular figure" (ummm...overstating things a bit?) which I used to fan myself, and proceeded into the exhibit with about ten other people all (except, oddly enough, a woman who was at least 50 kilos overweight) with sweat-soaked shirts stuck to their bodies.
The exhibit wasn't great, but it was enjoyable. I was expecting more photographs, but I did enjoy watching the film clips. Plus, the exhibit did touch on the subject of Chaplin's U.S. residency visa not being renewed by the U.S. government due to his "un-American activities", which made me interested in finding out more about him. If you're interested (I'll save you the 15 Francs), here's a pretty good recap of his life. I especially like the part where upon finding out that Chaplin's visa would not be renewed, his wife (an American citizen) immmediately went to the U.S., and liquidated/transferred most of the assets "...leaving the [U.S.] government without a penny for its trouble". I guess they showed 'em!
I left the museum and walked down to the shore of Lac Léman, bought a Coke, took in some of the hazy scenery (I had my camera, but the haziness didn't warrant a picture), and then decided...to WALK BACK UP THE HILL to the train station so I could catch a train to Nyon. You know what I found out? It was still hot, and I sweat twice as much going up the hill as I did going down it (What the hell was I thinking?). About halfway up the hill, I stopped in a convenience store and found that I was suddenly standing in beautiful, air-conditioned comfort. I loitered around as much as I could, and then bought my Coke and left when I sensed that the clerk was beginning to target me as a shoplifter.
Eventually, I made it back to train station, and I took the 5:45 train to Nyon so I could meet up with Mrs. TBF...