Translation of eskalieren

A bystander who watched the entire scene all the time decided to help me. He was an older man, around seventy, but nonetheless he went to the oldest of these kids and slapped him. The boy was sixteen.
I have been there once for vacation, but I was too little. It was twelve years ago, when I was still a child. I went there with mom and dad and all I cared about is beach and sand, no culture.
Somehow at three in the morning I finally fell asleep. The place did not serve breakfast but I went to the northern beach which offered really nice food. I ate some fruits and drank coffee.