<Begin Segment 9>

KN: And your father wrote that your mother converted some money that she had left behind, extra money, because she thought the cash was okay, into jewelry.

EK: Oh, yeah, yes. She always loved jewelry, and my dad would buy her good stuff, really nice things. And of course it was also good for the store, because she was well-dressed, meant a successful store, and so people would come from everywhere because had such a forward-looking way of doing things. Like he would make jingles and advertise over the radio, and the radio wave would go all over Peru, not just the little town. And so there's another side story to this. In 1965 when my husband and I were the first young couple to return to Peru, maybe the first one, my Auntie Juana, the second sister, was so kind, and she was actually my dear auntie, my favorite auntie. [Laughs] And she took us all over; she hired her cousin to drive us around, and we went to Ica to show us where the store, at that time it was still there, and someone, Mr. and Mrs. Garcia bought it, but it was still there. Italian shoemaker was still there, and so forth, and then we went to Huacachina where we used to go. It was a lagoon filled with green water which was very healthful. And now it's no longer there, it stopped, the water stopped coming, flowing, so it's no longer a very touristy place, although it's very hard, 'cause it's such a pretty little place surrounded by sandy mountains where we used to slide down. And when we stopped at one of the restaurants to have a little tea and coffee, and she asked the waiter there. In those days, still, if you're a waiter at a young age, you're a waiter forever. And so he was a waiter, and my auntie said, "By the way, many years ago, before the war, do you remember the bazaar called Bienvenida?" which means "welcome." He said, "Oh my gosh, I remember that," he said, "because at that time we lived away from Ica, but for every birthday and Christmas and special occasions, they would go to Bazaar Bienvenida to buy their gifts (for Christmas and special occasions)."

KN: So that was your family's...

EK: Yes. I was so thrilled, I really wanted to shout to my parents, who were at that time living in Chicago, to tell them, "Daddy, look what your advertising did." Because here's this man who used to come to Ica to do the shopping, and he would always go to my dad's store.

KN: Your dad was very ahead of his time.

EK: Yes, yes, he was.

KN: He was doing advertising in the newspapers...

EK: And the radio.

KN: And radio, and he was doing these jingles as promotions.

EK: Yes. And the way he designed, the store window was different, too. I mean, I don't remember that part too much, but it was.

KN: And you said he made your mother a reflection of the store. She was very well-groomed, very well-dressed.

EK: Yes.

KN: And so your father had bought her jewelry all through then, too.

EK: Yes, so she had a lot of jewelry. She's always loved jewelry since then, I think. And so even to an old age, she was always well-groomed, even in her eighties.

KN: So what did your mother do with all the jewelry going to camp? I mean, was she allowed to take that or did she also leave that behind?

EK: Well, she left a lot behind, but the better ones, of course, she took it. But they just got lost. I know, they just got lost. Many were lost here, and I don't want to say too much about that, but they did get lost.

KN: In the camps?

EK: No, not in the camps. Later.

KN: Oh, later.

EK: Either people swiped it, or I don't know, but it just got lost. So she hardly has anything left.

KN: I think, when I think of my mother's, thinking about my great-grandmother, it's about the jewelry, there was something about that generation, they had beautiful pieces.

EK: Yes. It's not cheapy type, you know.

KN: It's no inexpensive...

EK: No, it's very beautiful. Yeah, because you think that you'll pass it on, I think that's what it was. But it's never easy. They thought that they could convert it to cash, but then you don't know who these wealthy people are after camp. Who do you meet that's wealthy? Nobody. [Laughs] So they never were able to really convert it to cash.

<End Segment 9> - Copyright © 2012 Densho. All Rights Reserved.