Students and professors are of mixed opinions as Hong Kong starts day two under Chinese control after 156 years as a British colony.
Many expect the economy to boom and China to cut some of Hong Kong's civil liberties, but no one can predict the exact future of such a delicate political situation.
Hong Kong resident Leonora Lok '99 describes herself as "vaguely pessimistic" about the situation.
But Marc Sikkes '99, who spent his last two years of high school at a boarding school in Hong Kong and visited China last summer, describes himself as "cautiously optimistic" for what changes may come with the handover.
Some students gathered on campus to watch the changeover ceremony last night on television.
Government Professor David Kang said if he was not teaching at the College this summer, he would be in Hong Kong to watch the ceremony. The handover of such a "vibrant capitalistic economy," according to Kang, "is definitely an event."
But others are not as struck by something that has been waiting to happen since the agreement made between Britain and China in 1984.
"China has spent a lot of money on the ceremony and I wish they would use the money on their own people," Lok said.
Swee Ching Lim '99, whose parents work in Hong Kong, said the issue is "hyped up" now, but life will return to "normal" after a few years.
Adam Looney '99, whose family is living in Hong Kong but will soon move to London said, "From what I know, it's not a big deal."
Some fear riots by the people of Hong Kong or the use of violence by China to enforce rule.
Lok said she expects the time ahead to be peaceful, although there may be some protests.
But she said she is afraid China may abuse its power despite lessons learned in the Tiananmen Square in 1989 when hundreds of pro-democracy protesters were killed.
Kang said he does not foresee many drastic changes for the short immediate future. "Do I think China will be able to restrain itself from interfering? -- No. But do I think they will [interfere] with tanks? -- I doubt it."
A thriving economy
Some hope the Hong Kong economy will change for the better.
"I have a lot of confidence it will be thriving," said Sikkes, who plans to work there. "I'm staking my career on this."
Lok, who also plans to return home after graduation, said she hopes the economy will improve even if civil liberties are curbed."I expect business to boom because China has, after all, a vastly developing economy and will be better off with Hong Kong's help," she said.
Lok's father has a business in Hong Kong, and although her parents are not pro-communist, she said they are not planning to move because "there's nothing they can do."
Professor of Asian and Middle-Eastern Languages Hua-Yuan Mowry said the handover will help China's economy because it will give it free access to a free harbor and Hong Kong will serve as a model for entering a free market economy.
Looney said he does not expect large economic changes, but his father's firm in Hong Kong is expanding and a house worth $100 million was recently built on his street.
Looney said he does not believe China can afford to offend the Western powers because so much of their trade is tied up in that area.
Karen Hung '99, whose mother is from Hong Kong and whose father is from China, said the handover "is going to be good for Hong Kong in terms of economics."
She said many citizens of Hong Kong have been investing in China for several years and investment will be easier now that the two are under one government.
Dwindling liberties
Anti-communists and civil-liberties activists may not be looking forward to the new government system, but most said the majority of Hong Kong's people will not be significantly impacted by the changes.
Sikkes said many Chinese people hope China will become economically successful like Hong Kong.
"They see Hong Kong as a glamorous cosmopolitan city of very rich people," he said. "But the fledgling democratic institutions do not seem as important to them."
The people of China and Hong Kong care more about economic freedoms than political freedoms, Sikkes said.
"People don't care if they have a rubber stamp legislature or an actual representative one," he said.
He said he believes many people in Hong Kong are apolitical, and all off his Hong Kong friends at the boarding school do not care about the government.
"People are not concerned about politics nowadays," Mowry said. "Everyone is busy and making money instead of demonstrating or promoting democracy."
"In the long run, any anti-governemnt activites will be prohibited," Mowry said.
Sikkes said the American media is very slanted against China because democratic principles are more important to Americans than the Chinese.
Hung said the news coverage of the ceremony last night also made her aware of political propaganda, when a news broadcaster called China's former leader a tyrant.
Hung said "nobody really knows" if China will interfere with Hong Kong's civil liberties."
"We'll just have to hold our breath and wait and see," she said.
"It is a different game over there," Looney said. "No one is worried about the human-rights issue."
"The people who wanted to leave already left and the people who are left really do have confidence," Lim said.
Kang said issues such as human rights and trade relations may cause China to "clamp down" on Hong Kong's free press.
Lok said she expects to see some other changes, such as an increase in the common use of Mandarin, which is China's official dialect of Chinese. Currently, most of the Chinese spoken in Hong Kong is in the Cantonese dialect.
Melissa Kho '99, who has visited Hong Kong several times, said she expects cultural changes with the handover.
"I am slightly sad, just because under colonization, [Hong Kong] had a distinctive character with the mix of Chinese and British cultures."
