The People's Liberation Army rolled into town. Prince Charles and Governor Chris Patten packed up what's left of British colonial tradition and sailed away. But despite the new flags over Hong Kong, it seems this city will never be fully rid of royalty.
As Charles and Chris watched a farewell pageant put on by the Royal Marines, the Scots Guards, and the Highland Band, just a five-minute subway ride away in Kowloon Park not one, but two queens were crowned.
In a beauty contest only hours before the China-Hong Kong reunification was official, Babylyn Dasalla and Salve Canaya, both domestic workers from the Philippines, defeated 22 other contestants to share the "Queen of Asia" title.
The contest, staged in a downpour, suggested that the event the whole world was watching wasn't really the highest priority for a lot of Hong Kong people.
"Aren’t you glad to be part of this moment in history?" a bubbly emcee asked the audience of 3,000.
"No!" the crowd groaned.
Nevertheless, co-queen Canaya saw some thrilling convergence between her coronation and the exit of the British crown. "We’re all excited, because we are about to become part of the experience in the new era," she said.
Her sister monarch was focused more on the personal implications of her new title. "I like being queen because it boosts my ego," Dasalla said.
The co-queens voiced confidence about the future for domestic workers in Hong Kong. "I’m not worried," said Dasalla. "There is still the chance for us to make money here in Hong Kong."
"And we know that the Hong Kong government loves the Filipinas," said Canaya.
Protest, parties, police
While a small handful of protesters chanted pro-democracy slogans as midnight approached Monday night, many thousands more Hong Kongers were partying the night away. And just after the countdown hit zero, the revellers focused their affection in an unlikely direction.
Uniformed police officers, who moments earlier were working to keep the crowd under control, drew repeated cheers for quickly replacing the colonial badge on their caps with an insignia reflecting the authority of the new Special Administrative Region.
One of the most popular of the officers was motorcycle cop Sergeant Simon Lee. Photographers and onlookers surrounded Lee as he let a civilian have the honor of peeling the Royal Hong Kong Police decal off his helmet.
"Sometimes I have to remind myself that it's no longer going to be called the Royal Hong Kong Police, but just the Hong Kong Police," admitted Lee. "This is just a happy day. We're serving the community, and the people are enjoying themselves," said Lee.
And the people certainly were enjoying themselves.
"People are here to just enjoy the atmosphere - it's not that they are celebrating because China is taking over Hong Kong," said 23-year-old Julianna Li. "It's like Christmas, not because of the event, but because people are in a holiday mood."
