Amanda on the Danube: The Sounds of Music

By Darlene Foster

"Be prepared to learn a lot about the culture while you follow Amanda on her adventure.”—Laura Best, author, Bitter, Sweet

“What a great way for a young person to learn about a culture and to be inspired to experience other countries themselves."—Irene Butler, author, Trekking the Globe with Mostly Gentle Footsteps

Twelve year old Amanda Ross finds herself on an elegant riverboat with her bestie, Leah, cruising down the beautiful Danube, passing medieval castles, luscious green valleys and charming villages. When she is entrusted with a valuable violin by a young, homeless musician during a stop in Germany, a mean boy immediately tries to take it from her.

Back on their cruise, Amanda struggles to keep the precious violin safe for the poor prodigy. Along the way, she meets a mysterious monk, a Santa Claus look-alike, and the same nasty boy.

Follow Amanda down the Danube, through Germany, Austria and Hungary, as she enjoys the enchanting sounds of music everywhere she goes. She remains on the lookout though, wondering just who she can trust.

Be sure to read all the books in this exciting Amanda Travels series!
1. Amanda in Arabia: The Perfume Flask
2. Amanda in Spain: The Girl in the Painting
3. Amanda in England: The Missing Novel
4. Amanda in Alberta: The Writing on the Stone
5. Amanda on the Danube: The Sounds of Music
6. Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind
7. Amanda in Holland: Missing in Action
8. Amanda in Malta: The Sleeping Lady

• Language: English
• Publisher: Central Avenue Teen
• Release date: Oct 1, 2016
• ISBN: 9781771681032

Darlene Foster

Brought up on a ranch in southern Alberta, Darlene Foster dreamt of writing, travelling the world and meeting interesting people. She also believes everyone is capable of making their dreams come true. It's no surprise that she's now an award-winning author of the children's Amanda Travels Adventure series, and divides her time between the west coast of Canada and Orihuela Costa, in Spain.

Book preview

1

Pleeease, Mom. Can we go? Please. Please? Amanda Ross stared at the computer screen. Come and look at this website. The boat looks awesome, and the scenery along the river is amazing."

Mrs. Ross approached the laptop. A river cruise on the Danube would be nice, Amanda, but I don’t think your dad and I can get the time off.

But, Mom, it would be so much fun and you’d get to meet Leah’s parents. They’re real cool. I know you’d like them.

Those river cruises are quite expensive. I’m not sure we can afford it.

It says here in Leah’s email that if we book now, we can get a big discount. I really want to see Leah again.

Amanda’s mom sighed. It was nice of the Andersons to invite us. I could use a holiday. I’ll discuss it with your dad and we’ll see. Don’t get your hopes up, sweetie. She patted Amanda’s head.

Amanda sent an email back to Leah, This just might work out.

"Guten Tag, fräulein." The young, blond flight attendant smiled at Amanda as she left the plane.

‘I like it here already,’ Amanda thought as she saw a large sign.

WILLKOMMEN TO NUREMBERG

Can you believe we’re in Germany, Mom?

Just stay close to us, Amanda. I don’t want you getting lost in this big airport.

Mom, you seem to forget I have been to big airports before. This isn’t any bigger than the ones in London, Madrid or Dubai.

Mrs. Ross rolled her eyes. Are you going to remind us this entire trip that you’ve travelled more than we have?

This way to the baggage. Don Ross pointed to a sign.

After a comfortable sleep in a squeaky clean hotel with the biggest, fluffiest pillows Amanda had ever seen, the Ross family was ready to start their trip down the Danube River.

There’s our boat! shouted Amanda as she peered out the cab window. "The Sound of Music. That’s our boat. I wonder if Leah and her parents are here already."

The cab dropped them off beside a long, low boat with The Sound of Music written in large letters on the side. The ‘f’ was replaced with a treble clef.

Once on board, they entered an elegant lobby furnished with blue velvet chairs and couches. This is sooo adorable, Amanda said. "You love The Sound Of Music movie, Mom, and there are pictures of the von Trapp family all over the walls."

Her mom’s face lit up when she saw the familiar scenes.

Suddenly, everything went black and Amanda couldn’t see a thing.

Hiya, Canadian girl.

Amanda recognized that English accent. She peeled off the hands covering her glasses and turned around. Leah! She gave her tall, blonde friend a huge hug.

We only just got here ourselves. Mum and Dad are putting the luggage in our room. Your room is just across from us. Leah flashed a wide grin at Amanda’s parents. I’m so glad you could make this trip. We are all going to have loads of fun. Come, Amanda, let’s explore the boat.

See you later. Amanda barely looked at her parents as she tripped down the narrow hallway behind Leah.

First stop was a large room completely surrounded by windows. Round tables with crisp white tablecloths, set for a meal—without a fork or knife out of place—indicated it was the dining room. Sparkling chandeliers hung from the ceiling.

Wow! Every table has a view. This will be a fab place to eat. Amanda looked around. I hope we can all eat together.

Mum has already made sure of that. We got here early so we got to pick which table we wanted for the entire trip. Leah pointed to a table at the very front of the boat. Ours is that table for six, the one with the best view.

Amanda noticed an undone shoelace on her runner and bent down to tie it. Her purse slipped off her shoulder and fell to the floor. As she picked it up, she spotted small red dots sprinkled on the beige and blue carpet.

What’s this? Do you think someone spilled ketchup?

Leah bent down to look closer. Yes, it could be tomato sauce.

More red spots appeared further along. Something must have dripped from a plate when they were clearing the tables, remarked Leah.

I think it might be…blood. Amanda followed the spots to a set of stairs.

Leah shook her head. There goes your overactive imagination again.

I think we should follow the spots. I have a funny feeling about them. Amanda proceeded down the short flight of stairs. Leah followed her. The faint red dots led them to a closed door with STORAGE written on it. Amanda reached for the handle.

Wait a minute, Amanda. I don’t think we are meant to go in there, Leah said.

What if someone’s in there and hurt?

Amanda turned the handle. The door opened to a small, dark room. She could make out shelves packed with items like toilet paper, tissues, paper towels, soaps and shampoos. She was about to close the door when the sound of a groan stopped her. Finding a light switch, she noticed a shoe sticking out from under a shelf.

There’s someone in—

What are you girls doing? That room is only for staff. If you need any supplies, just ask any one of us. A young man appeared behind them.

S-Sorry. We’re just finding our way around, Amanda stammered. She closed the door.

Is this your first time on a river cruise? asked the young man with a kind smile.

Yes, said Amanda. We should get back to our parents.

Enjoy the cruise and remember if you need anything, just ask. I’m Michael, the cruise director.

When they returned to the cabins, the girls were happy to find out that they shared a room adjoining Leah’s parents’ suite.

OMG. We have our own entrance and our own keys! Amanda looked around. The comfortable room with a large side window overlooked the peaceful canal and emerald green banks. And look at that great view!

This is going to be an amazing trip. We’ll get to see all kinds of things for the first time. I’m so glad your parents agreed to it. Leah grabbed Amanda around the waist and did a little dance.

I’m super excited too, Amanda said when she caught her breath. I just wonder who’s hiding in the storage room. Do you think he’s hurt?

2

That evening, after a delicious meal of wiener schnitzel , roasted potatoes and a dessert of plum cake called pflaum kuchen , everyone moved to the lounge for the entertainment. Young men in lederhosen, leather shorts with decorated suspenders, and young women in dirndls, colourful dresses with poofy sleeves and aprons finished off with