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TI: Today is September 20, 2019, we're in San Francisco in your brother's house. What's this neighborhood called?

GN: Noe Valley.

TI: And we're here with George Naganuma. On camera is Yuka Murakami, and interviewing is Yoko Nishimura, and I'm -- I don't think I did this last time -- I'm Tom Ikeda, I'm the interviewer. I think I didn't say that last time. So, George, I'm just going to start off with some background questions. So can you tell me when and where you were born?

GN: Okay, I was born August 20, 1938, in Lima, Peru.

TI: Oh, so your brother said Callao?

GN: Oh, so Lima is the capital of Peru, Callao is the city.

TI: Got it, okay. And then this is, it's kind of like a seaport, it's kind of by the ocean?

GN: I guess so, because I remember the sailors that used to know, my father used to know sailors from Japan. So I guess it was close by.

TI: Now, do you have any memories of Lima or Peru? Because you were quite young.

GN: Oh, yeah. I remembered the earthquake.

TI: Oh, tell me about the earthquake. Oh, I think I do remember this, but yeah, tell me about the earthquake.

GN: Yeah, the earthquake, I think I was sitting on a table listening to a phonograph because I liked music when I was a kid all the way through. And then the earthquake, I remember facing...

[Interruption]

TI: Okay, so we were talking about...

GN: Yeah, the earthquake. I remember looking out in the backyard, we had a big backyard, and I could see the roof just tumbling down, and that's in my mind.

TI: How old would you have been?

GN: Gee, I have no idea.

TI: And when you say the roof coming down, was it like, what kind of roof was it?

GN: I don't know.

TI: You just saw things coming down?

GN: Just coming down. That's in my mind, it wasn't a dream, I don't think, I just remember that.

TI: Because you would have been pretty young.

GN: Yeah.

TI: Because this was, like in 1940, 1941?

GN: Right.

TI: Any other memories of the house?

GN: Of course, I remember the, in the back of the yard there was like a dance hall where my father used to give parties. I remember the dance hall because when they had the party and we used to go and peek what was happening inside, I could see people dancing. And that's it, I don't remember anything else, but I remember that.

TI: And if you close your eyes, can you even hear the music?

GN: No.

TI: Just could see visually what was going on?

GN: No, just people dancing and that's it.

TI: And was it like a fancy affair, I mean, were people dressed up? I'm thinking of, what's that, The Sound of Music where kids come down and watch the parents, I was wondering if it was...

GN: I don't know how they were dressed, really. I'm sure they were dressed up.

TI: You just remember going down there and peeking?

GN: Yeah, right.

TI: Any other memories of the house? Like do you remember where you'd sleep?

GN: No, I sure don't, not much about the house.

TI: How about the backyard with the chickens and ducks?

GN: I know that we had that, but I don't, I just don't remember that.

<End Segment 1> - Copyright © 2019 Densho. All Rights Reserved.