C olombo has been in the international shipping lane linking East and West since time immemorial. The Portuguese landed there and called the island Selan alluding to the many herbs and spices found there. The Arabs called it Serendip when, perchance, they sailed to it. The word 'serendipity' entered the English lexicon from it. The British called it Ceylon and the name remained so until 1972 A.D. when she became Sri Lanka. The ship of Prime Minister Jung Bahadur Rana of Nepal docked in Colombo on his sea voyage to England and back in 1850 A.D. Much later in 1956 A.D. Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew visited Colombo and, bowled over by the beauty of the land, vowed to transport Singapore in its image.  Independence Square with statue of the country's first prime minister Rt. Hon. Don Stephen Senanayake I had the fortunate opportunity of visiting Sri Lanka recently taking time off during the Dasain holidays, a much deserved sojourn having survived two lock-downs brough