I asked Dad where we used to live in Lima. I think he said Barranco (I also remember San Isidro which is where I think grandma and great grandma lived; today my cousins live in Miraflores). He said the brothers had a chicken farm with 1M chickens but had to sell the farm when the government set chicken prices at a price that a small farm like theirs couldn't sell for a profit (and even the black market with the various bribes and such was about break-even). This was back in the late 1970's.

With no job prospects (I guess economy was bad at the time hence government fixing prices) that's why we moved to USA. Dad used the money from selling his part of the chicken farm (at a loss) and sold his house (again at a loss -- I guess the huge nice house I remember where one of the carpenters cut his hand open on a bench electric saw).

I guess we were not illegal immigrants (possibly used a tourist visa for 6 months) because we got a business visa which is why my parents opened a Chinese restaurant. They made enough money to buy a house with a nice school nearby (which my sister and I walked to along with a lot of other kids) and a middle school about 10 minute bike ride or 30 minute walk away. Uncle Martin (my Dad's half brother in New York) submitted application forms for naturalization which we got eventually.

After seven years the restaurant was making a profit but mom didn't want to invest in improvements and more help and dad was tired of 10-hour work days 6 days a week so they sold the restaurant for $50k. Mom took that chance to go back to university to get her CPA (2 years) and then an internship at State of California government since we are officially Hispanic. Dad went to work for Sacramento County (as I remember).