Our guide did not introduce himself to our group of 14, or if he did, I missed it. He struggled with English, though it was obvious he had put a lot of work into learning English and he seemed to enjoy his work. It was hard to understand everything he said.
We started off with a visit to, Thap Ba, the Ponagar Cham Towers. The Cham people once controlled a large area from the 2nd century CE to about the 12th century. They built a large tower complex around 817 to honor Ponagar, their Goddess, and other Hindu deities. 
I put on a robe provided by the temple (and used by everybody and his brother) and took off my shoes to go inside the largest tower. 
It wasn't very large inside. No photos were allowed. There was an alter with the familiar looking offerings, colorful designs, umbrellas, etc. There was so much incense smoke it burned my eyes. A few people were on the ground praying.
There are still some Cham around. Some of them were playing music and perform a dance behind the large tower. They looked and sounded vaguely Arabic to me. The women were beautiful and they balanced pots on their heads during one of the dances.
During our time at this site one of the men in our group tripped over a big rock that protruded from the pavement. He went down pretty hard and he was right in front of me and I saw it all happen in slow motion. He had some cuts on his hand and leg and he was dazed and confused afterward. I tried to help him and gave him some water and tissues, but he was really not responding to my questions and was not able to hold onto the water and tissues. I was concerned for him. Our guide called a first aid person to come and they took him into the shade and cleaned him up a bit. (It was already well above the 82 F predicted for today.) The rest of us waited about 40 minutes until the guide came back and said we were ready to go. I asked the guide what happened to him and he pointed toward one of the small tower structures. The man was sitting in the shade there with three beautiful young Cham dancers fanning him and making a fuss over him. All the guys in our group were jealous.
As we exited the Cham Tower site, we were besieged by vendors. They were mostly selling fans, which was smart because it was so hot.
We next walked through some back alleys towards the Cai River. It was interesting, as a lot of life seems to be lived in the back alleys. There were motorcycles driving up and down, entrances to houses, laundry hanging out to dry, little shops, and so on. The injured fellow came with us. He seemed much better. Apparently his wife was on a different tour, but the guide was making sure he was ok.
We came to a little workshop that was open to the river on the other side. There we boarded a boat for our river cruise. It was much cooler on the water. When we got to a large bridge, a woman in a small round boat rowed over and handed our guide a pile of conical hats and we each got one. I really like mine. 
I don't think it is practical to try to get it home, though. As we rode up the river we soon left the urban area and I began to see the Vietnam I had expected to see all along. It was mostly rural, rustic, and impoverished. Restaurants along the river had no walls - just cheap plastic tables and chairs. Houses were ramshackle and had chickens wandering around.
We got off our boat at one restaurant where, if I understood correctly, snake was on the menu, and walked through it to a narrow street. On the other side of the street was a small business that produced clay ovens. They were made by hand and were very rudimentary. I'm not sure how much they are still used. I think it used to be quite an industry because people used to smash their clay ovens every year at the beginning of Tet, the lunar new year. We also saw how bricks used to be made by hand. On the way out, the vendors again. Motorcycles parked nearby.
Back to the riverboat and further upriver to a small wooden toll bridge big enough for motorcycles but not cars. Motorcycles were zipping back and forth across it making the boards rattle. We got out here and went to see a pagoda, i.e., a Buddhist temple.
At the entrance the vendors awaited us. This time I noticed a man who had no arms and no legs. He was right by the entrance. I put a dollar in his pouch. Nobody else gave him anything. Maybe I should have given him more, I doubt he gets anything from the government. And there was no way he could have been faking his disability.
Question:
What is rectangular, has flashing colored lights, colorful designs, and a place in the front to put money?
A. A pinball machine
B. A Buddhist altar
This was a typical village pagoda. It was interesting but not different than any of the others we have seen so far. In the courtyard, however, we had a chance to observe some of the locals weaving rush mats. Again, I think this one was more of a demonstration than a business, mainly because they weren't selling any mats at the site. Each loom took two people to operate.
We came to a small "resort" that had tables set up for us by the river. We each got a fresh coconut and some fruit, the same as yesterday. It was much appreciated.
Our final stop was a "local people's house." We stopped at the intersection of a dirt road and an alley. There were some fields there and a pond or stream. There was a pen in the pond and there were a hundred or so ducks inside the pen. It smelled terrible.
We walked down the alley past the duck pen. The vendors were there. So was the beggar with no arms and legs. Nobody gave him any money. The fence on this side of the duck pen was covered with old mattresses. It looked pretty grim. On the other side there were some houses with trees and flowers in their yards.
Our home visit took us to a house that was similar to the farm house we saw yesterday, but a little bit cleaner and comparatively more prosperous. . . .
I am going to have to cut it short and finish another day so I can go to bed.
The buildings are beautiful. And I like your hat. But the heat....
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