Historical Sites in the Vietnam Capital, Hanoi-Hue.

When arriving in Hanoi, your first order of business (naturally) is to check into a Hanoi hotel. As the capital of Vietnam, Hanoi has no shortage of luxury hotels, while the low end is amply secured by a number of hotels in the Old Quarter.

View from the Great Middle Gate, Temple of Literature, Hanoi

In the morning, stop by the Temple of Literature, an ancient university campus and now a museum and temple. The Temple is almost a millennium old, just a dozen years younger than the city of Hanoi. The Temple is actually a series of compounds linked together by a number of picturesque gates and a long trio of paths, culminating in an ornate Buddhist temple. Visitors are welcome to the Temple from Tuesday to Sunday, from from 8am to 5pm. Take a short taxi ride west of the Temple of Literature to Hoa Lo Prison - the "Hanoi Hilton" much feared by American pilots. Fighter and bomber jockeys who survived being shot down over Hanoi were sent to this interrogation center, where they were tortured and brainwashed into submission. Today there's no trace of this ill-treatment of Americans; a single room in the whole museum shows a whitewashed version of American POW life in the "Hanoi Hilton", with the rest of the compound being devoted to the struggles of Vietnamese prisoners in Hoa Lo during French colonial times. Decompress after Hoa Lo by walking through Hoan Kiem Lake a few minutes' walk northwest. The Lake is a key component of Hanoi history - the origin myth of the Vietnamese nation took place here, where (shades of King Arthur!) future emperor Le Loi received a sword from a magic turtle. The sword enabled Le Loi to drive the invading Chinese out of Vietnam. From Hoan Kiem Lake, you'll be perfectly positioned to enjoy the nearby bars, pubs, and live entertainment in Hanoi, Vietnam. (Spare a few minutes to visit the Central Train Station to get your train ticket from Hanoi to Hue - you'll be riding the rails at the end of Day 4.)