Habarana, Sri Lanka

The charms of Cinnamon Lodge are revealed in daylight. We rise early and go for a run around the grounds, past tennis courts and even a helicopter pad, heading down to the lake and then weaving in and out of the pretty little paths that take us through the organic farm which provides lots of produce for the hotel. It really is quite lovely.

In addition to the huge variety of trees and plants we also see cranes and ibis, giant squirrels and monkeys, and even stumble upon a profusion of butterflies that suddenly take flight all around us, in a fabulously beautiful moment.

The only problem with all this nature is that the Sri Lankan mosquitos seem to have a taste for my blood, unlike most other places we have travelled. So it's not just Coman rubbing antihistamine creams and various other lotions onto the swelling welts that appear.

Today's excursion is to the ancient city of Polonnaruwa, a UNESCO World Heritage Sight. This is the city where King Parakramabahu, the 12th Century king of the Sinhalese, married his Indian wife and built Hindu temples alongside the vast Buddhist structures, enshrining religious tolerance amongst his people. He also created vast reservoirs, or tanks, to collect rainwater and irrigate the land.

En route to see the grandest of these named the Sea of Parakrama, we notice the roads have electric fencing built along them. This is to keep the wild elephants straying out of the jungle into traffic, but the intelligent beasts will not be stopped if they want to cross from one area to another and often break branches off the trees to trample the fences down without being electrocuted.

December and January are traditionally dry months but due to climate change there were monsoon conditions which ended, fortunately two days before we arrived. In fact, for the first time in 52 years every reservoir in Sri Lanka is full to its limit due to the rains that have just lashed the island and flooded large areas of the roads we're now travelling along.

At the Sea of Parakrama reservoir we visit the official Polonnaruwa museum full of fascinating exhibits and reconstructions of how the city would have looked but nothing prepares you for the sheet scale and majesty of the ruins.

The site is huge, 125 acres, and divided into various sections that would have housed the royal family and the 5,000 monks who lived in the monastic quarters. Beyond the walls there would also have been a civilian population and the site, which started being excavated 40 years ago is still being uncovered to this day.

Temples, palaces, gardens, huge stupas, giant Buddhas, a vast monastery with thousands of individual cells for the monks and even a hospital have all been excavated and, in parts, reconstructed from the original, jungle-strewn ruins.

Due to the sacred nature of the site and the fact many of the buildings are religious we are constantly removing and then putting back on our shoes to be able to visit each section, a process which in the sapping heat becomes exhausting.

We enter by walking over moonstones, carved half circles at the base of each staircase showing the four incarnations of life; elephant (birth), horse (childhood), lion (work and sickness) and bull (death).

Other symbols include swans for purity and rings of flames denoting the astrological barriers through which the soul must pass for each rebirth. At the centre of each moonstone is the lotus flower denoting enlightenment and the end of earthly reincarnation, where our souls ascend to nirvana.

Our final stop is a massive single piece of rock out of which has been carved three representations of Buddha; seated, standing and recumbent. It's very impressive if slightly marred by the scaffolded protection above it.

But what mars the visit more is the ridiculous rise of the selfie stick with coachloads of tourists all insisting on gathering together to get in each shot, with the stupid extendable arm being brandished at every available opportunity.

The vast majority of users are Chinese and Japanese but a number of European idiots are also at it, insisting they need to be in every shot they take, because of course the scenery isn't impressive enough unless you're blocking half of it with your grinning face.

We're pretty shattered by the end of our visit, the clouds gathering overhead bringing even higher levels of humidity with them so we're happy to be back at the hotel for a late lunch, opting to go Western for once and getting a club sandwich and welcome beer.

An afternoon of relaxing by the pool, despite the overcast skies is a very welcome luxury. However by 4.30 the rain comes down driving the guests to take cover in the bars and the monkeys to descend from the trees, stealing whatever has been left behind in the sudden dash for shelter.

One enterprising primate even grabs an abandoned cocktail and climbs back up a tree, sipping it through a straw until a staff member throws a rubber ball at it, causing the monkey to drop it to the ground with a crash.

That evening, rather than experience the delights of the buffet again we dine in the much quieter a la carte Lotus Restaurant next door.

It's very good, with just a few fellow guests at other tables and remarkably good food, at the same price as the buffet. We sip cocktails and are served a very tasty amuse bouche of parmesan crisps with beautiful dips, followed by starters of cauliflower soup and salmon with asparagus.

My main of roasted duck and Coman's pork tagliatelle may not be very Sri Lankan but then little on the menu provides an "authentic" experience, so we just go with the flow, sipping over-priced wine and letting the evening ebb away as we slowly feel ourselves unwind.

After last night's slight disenchantment, this place is growing on us.