From Volos we made a connecting stop at Larissa and boarded the train to Thessaloniki and arrived at 4 p.m. While at the train station we bought a ticket to Istanbul. We found a B class hotel called the Rotunda and just loved the hot water. On the way to dinner I bought a pair of shoes and Mom bought a nightgown. After dinner for some type of joke Mom pinched my behind and I think I surprised her by retaliating with a bit of humour if you can call it that. She whirled around not appreciating receiving a dose of her own medicine and called me a slob and stormed off getting lost. The police had to put her in a taxi and tell the driver to take her back to our hotel. I managed to make it back to the hotel on a bus. I slept on the floor by the bathroom.
August 12: well today is my birthday and I have turned 15 and not exactly a happy start considering yesterday’s tantrum. We went to the market and bought some food for the train trip to Istanbul. We had meatballs for lunch and returned to our hotel for a siesta. After our nap downtown on bus #10 for a feast of beef. Goodness knows what they eat in Turkey. Tomorrow we leave for Istanbul. A rotten birthday without even grumpy wishing me a happy birthday.