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ABOUT THE INNKEEPERS Innkeepers Lily and Doug Vieyra have come from a varied and colorful background. Liliane (Lily) Lebbe Duhameeuw was born and raised in Ypres, in the Flemmish region of Belgium - "In Flanders field, where poppies grow, row on row" - in 1929. After surviving life as a refugee in France during the German invasion of Belgium and later France, she returned home to Ypres and survived the remainder of WWII under German occupation. With the liberation of Belgium by Canadian, British and American forces in the fall of 1944, she spend the next six years repairing the lives and homes that had been so brutally disrupted. Lily's family business for four generations had been (and still is ) Studio Portrait Photography. As such, the family business required the speaking of every language near it's borders. So, like many Europeans, Lily learned to speak fluent Dutch, French, English, German, as well as her native Flemmish
But it wasn't long before the tug and pull of the life at sea called again. Joining two long-time friends and a "Raw recruit" - Lily Duhameeuw, the four set off for a trip around the world on a 34' Hans Christian sail boat. Both Doug and Lily enjoyed each others company enough to get married at sea by a passing Ship's Captain. After a year and a half at sea, Doug and Lily landed in the seaport of Oostend, in Lily's homeland of Belgium. The next several years were spent traveling throughout Europe's back country, spending much time in the Alpine region of Austria, Bavaria and Switzerland. Upon returning to California, Doug and Lily went back to the remote wilderness of California's rugged North Coast, deep in the interior of Humboldt County. There they developed a homestead and built a Redwood and Cedar cabin in the style of the traditional Swiss/Austrian Chalets of the high Alps. They then began developing their extensive holdings of ranch and timberland. The raising of cattle and trees dominated their lives for the next ten years. Their remote wilderness cabin was powered by Wind and Solar generated electricity. An ample supply of wood fueled both the cook stove and the heat stove. Pure mountain spring water filled the two 1,000 gallon water tanks. Food from hunting and trapping was supplemented by home-grown vegetables. But life in the wilderness is hard. Cold. And sometimes, brutal; with working hours from sun-up to sun-down. And after ten years of living in the wilderness, with the greying of hair and beard, Doug and Lily decided to move more permanently into their town house in Eureka, and open up a few rooms of the ornate Victorian Mansion to fellow travelers. Thus was born, in September of 1990, "Abigail's Elegant Victorian Mansion" - Historic Lodging Accommodations. So who is Abigail? Come join us to discover the answer. |
