My mother and father were either dating or just married, in China.

Edit*****:

Cathy Huang made a good observation that it was unlikely they would have been so close in a dating situation ( I would add, without a chaperon) so probably the photo was taken shortly after marrying. This was before WW2. China entered the war July 7, 1937, when it was invaded by Japan- 4 years before the US.

My father likely came back to US shortly after the photo and my mom gave birth to my brother, so photo probably was around 1935- 1936.

When the Japanese invaded Hong Kong, my mother with my baby brother and her mother fled to Guangdong (Canton) China and sought refuge with a friend, who let them live in a shack on their farm.

My father had no idea if they were alive and he obviously could not send money during the war, from the US. Things were tough for my mother, grandmother and the young baby, including obtaining food. My grandmother sacrificed food so my brother could survive and died. My poor mother had to find the funds to bury her. She had a hard life.