%%Today's Hu? is the provincial capital of Th?a Thiên - Hu?.The melancholy beauty of Hu?, capital of the last Vietnamese feudal regime, derives from the quiet Sông Huong (Perfume River) weaving its course between rolling hills housing the temples and tombs of the Nguy?n Kings. This feature of Hu? has been enhanced by the recent addition of many modern hotels and offices on the banks of the river. On the southern bank of Perfume River, construction has started beside the Huong Giang Hotel for the new, three-star, 138-room Hu? Hotel. Director of the Th?a Thiên - Hu? Tourist Company Nguy?n Thanh Dân, said that the hotel has been partly put into operation and all the hotel rooms under his charge had been booked for June by tourists from France, United States, Norway, Australia and Germany. There will be 600 Germans, 350 French and so on. In July, the company will welcome more than 300 American tourists, most of them veterans of the Vietnam War, who had visited Hu? at least once during the war. Hu? is one of the three biggest tourist centres of Vietnam. Its attraction lies first of all in the many temples, palaces and mausoleums of Nhà Nguy?n (Nguy?n Dynasty) built between 1805 and 1832. The old citadel measures 11 kilometres in circumference with a 21-metre thick wall and a flagpole standing 54.4 metres high. The Nguy?n kings, from T? Ð?c and Minh M?ng to Ð?ng Khánh and Thi?u Tr? were buried in mausoleums of different architectural styles. Hu? also boasts nearly one hundred Buddhist pagodas and temples. Visitors should not miss Thiên M? Pagoda built in 1601 on a very poetic site on the bank of Perfume River, or the T? Ðàm pagoda. Among Hu?'s many tourist attractions are Perfume River, Ng? Mountain, Tràng Ti?n and Phú Xuân bridges, V?ng C?nh (Belvedere) Hill, B?ch Mã (White Horse) Mountain, H?i Vân Pass, Tam Giang Lagoon, Thu?n An and C?nh Duong beaches and further north, the C?a Tùng and C?a Vi?t estuaries. Hu? also boasts the National College which was attended by H? Chí Minh in his young age, Duong Mo village with fascinating records from the fight against the French, and the museum devoted to Phan B?i Châu, a prominent patriot during the early years of French domination. From Hu?, you can rent a car from the Th?a Thiên - Hu? tourist company to visit the system of tunnels in Vinh Moc village dug during the US air war of destruction against North- Vietnam and Hi?n Luong bridge at the demarcation line established between North and South Vietnam following the 1954 Geneva Conference. Then you can proceed to C?n Tiên and D?c Mi?u, famous battle sites where vestiges of the US defence line are till visible, and further west, the H? Chí Minh Trail. Visitors will never be bored by monotony or repetition during a ten-day or five-day package tour of Hu?. If you are an admirer of antiquities, you may order a "royal feast" at the Huong Giang Hotel or sit on a "dragon" rowboat (which used to cater for the royal family only) and listen to the mellow song of young girls rowing. If you want to watch the quiet glory of dusk over the Huong River you can hire a room at the Huong Giang or Hu? hotels. If you like to listen to the lapping of sea waves, go to Tân M? Hotel on the beach at Thu?n An. If you want a completely still night, you may choose Thu?n Hoá or Morin hotels. Wherever you go you will be treated to the most varied traditional dishes of Hu?, prepared and served by lovely girls dressed in the violet "áo dài" (long gown) which is also a typical feature of Hu?. From Hà N?i or Thành Ph? H? Chí Minh, you can reach Hu? by air, land and water. A twice weekly air service has just been inaugurated between Phú Bài airport in Hu? and Tân Son Nh?t airport in Thành Ph? H? Chí Minh. A similar service will soon operate between Hu? and Hà N?i, and arrangements are being made with Thai Airlines to link Phú Bài with Bangkok. In 1991 the Th?a Thiên - Hu? tourist company received 60,000 guests including 10,000 foreigners. Investment on infrastructure will increase from 4.2 billion dong in 1991 to 10.5 billion this year.With its present capacity, Hu? can receive at any one time 1,100 guests at both state-owned hotels which have more than 500 rooms, plus at private mini-hotels and homes.