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1904 onwards: Just who was the enigmatic Mata Hari – dancer, lover or spy?
Mata Hari
What you need to know before your trail
Paris, 1917. The notorious dancer Mata Hari sits in a cold cell awaiting freedom . . . or death. She’s been arrested on charges of treason leading to the deaths of thousands of French soldiers. But she is as confused as everyone else is about the charges and prays that she will be released.
Alone and troubled in her cell, she is visited by a reporter and so she starts to open up and reveal her story. Taking us back to her childhood, she reveals a long standing feeling of abandonment starting with her father and leading up to her unfortunate marriage to a military officer. Taken to the island of Java, Mata Hari refuses to be ruled by her abusive husband and instead learns to dance, paving the way to her stardom as Europe’s most infamous exotic dancer.
From lush Indian temples and glamorous Parisian theatres to stark German barracks in war-torn Europe, Moran brings to vibrant life the famed world of Mata Hari: dancer, courtesan, and possibly, spy.
Locations
ResetTravel Guide
The Mata Hari Tour of Paris:
Montmatre
Touring the clubs in Paris, the La Madeline and L’Ete are two different worlds. At La Madeline she wears a wine colored sarong and danced without music whilst imagining the sounds of a guitar. Then in L’Ete, another club, it’s where the poor entertain the poor and where the girls stink of alcohol and poverty.
Guimet’s Museum
Guimet invites Mata to dance for him and he shows her the George Washington statue right beside the museum now bearing his name –National Museum of Asian Art
Le Bon Marche
For all the finery you could shake a feather boa at. Mata Hari is told they are going to buy special items for the upcoming Rothschild event as ‘Everyone who sees you must remember you”
The Rothschild mansion
Then it’s back to Rue Balzac where she had an apartment but not before having a look at the hotel which mixes Balzac and Rothschild in one – hotelsalomonderothschild
Streetview Maps
B) Paris - George Washington Statue
H) Berlin - Deutches Theatre
Booktrailer Review
Susan: @thebooktrailer
I can honestly say that I thought I knew a little about Mata Hari. I’d heard the stories like anyone else but as I started reading this fascinating account of her life, it was a real eye opener.
Of course much of this is fictional but based on a lot of research and so what I’ve just read is a rich picture of one troubled woman living in Paris and being used and abused by men who see her as nothing more than a plaything. However she’s not about to sit back and accept her fate but rather she accepts the gifts and lives the highlife. She seems to be enjoying not only the life Paris can offer her but the numerous men who want to be with her. She starts to work things her way to buy wanting gifts or money in return for dances and favours. This is what built up her image as a good time girl I would think. Whilst I skimmed some of her ‘get togethers’ I was entranced by the Paris theatres and the era of the dance halls.
Interesting that the three sections of the book are broken down and entitled Creation, Fecundity and destruction as by the end of the novel, you realise just what the journey has been like. Europe during war time would have been a horrendous situation for anyone to find themselves in but Mata has to navigate it whilst trying to find her daughter.
She also came across as very naive at points which I hadn’t thought of her. She tells people what they want to hear but privately says something else. How true of celebrities today though and how quickly an image can be created!
I finished the book realising that I hadn’t really known Mata Hari at all until now and that her image was far stronger than her real self. Her story is one of tragedy and misunderstanding and I really feel that I’ve seen a whole new side to someone real instead of just an image.
Booktrail Boarding Pass Information: Mata Hari
Author/ Guide: Michelle Moran Destination: Paris, Europe Departure Time: 1904 onwards
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