In the end it all came down to a pot of tea. Former Governor Chris Patten yesterday passed the dying moments of his Asian adventure around a table with his inner circle. He spent about 30 minutes with his family and closest advisers, Martin Dinham and Edward Llewellyn, in the VIP lounge of Manila's Ninoy Aquino airport before boarding a flight to San Francisco. Mr Patten, his wife Lavender and daughters Kate, Laura and Alice, will spend two weeks on holiday in the United States before retreating to a country house in France. Yawning frequently after the hectic past few days, Mr Patten appeared ready for rest, slumped in a lounge chair wearing an open-necked shirt and jacket and loafers without socks. The gravity of Monday's departure all seemed far away as he dealt with airline bags, passports and immigration papers while others chatted. Seventeen-year-old Alice, his youngest daughter, studied press clippings of the handover while Mr Llewellyn sat on the arm of her chair. Mrs Patten seemed most at ease, laughing with their host in the Philippines, British Ambassador Adrian Thorpe. She bear-hugged Mr Dinham and Mr Llewellyn before the family headed to their first-class seats, saying simply: 'Thanks for everything. See you at the end of August.' Mr Patten became a private citizen after Monday's handover but still received full VIP treatment during his stay in the Philippines. The family arrived with the Prince of Wales aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia on Thursday afternoon to a 21-gun salute, after a choppy trip through the South China Sea. Barely acknowledging a big crowd of onlookers, the Pattens were whisked across the city after declining any official engagements. They stayed within the walls of the ambassador's residence in the fortified enclave of opulent Forbes Park - a move which ensured Mr Patten spent the last night of his Asian career on British territory. He refused interviews, saying only: 'I have nothing to add.' The family was ferried across town in an embassy Range Rover and a purple van with tinted windows. It was also business as usual for Prince Charles. On Monday night he may have handed over Hong Kong to President Jiang Zemin, but by Thursday he was back to more regular duties, handing over a pair of rare tarsier monkeys - a gift from Philippine First Lady Amelita Ramos - to a conservation foundation in Manila. The prince flew out of Manila yesterday.
