The Chinese astronaut, Yang Liwei, was a big hit in Hong Kong, while the Science Museum, for the first time in its history, opened round the clock to allow as many people as possible to view his space capsule and learn about China's achievements in space.
No doubt, this will go some lengths towards achieving the central government's goal of getting Hong Kong people to be a bit more nationalistic, identifying with their nation and its accomplishments in all fields of endeavour.
The Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (Cepa) between Hong Kong and the mainland will also result in numerous contacts between Hong Kong businesspeople and their counterparts, not only in Guangdong, but in virtually all the major mainland cities. This cannot help but bind Hong Kong much more closely to the mainland in an intricate web of economic cultural, social and political ties. It will also strain the 'one country, two systems' policy that is supposed to apply to Hong Kong.
Currently, the central government is bending over backwards to accommodate Hong Kong's needs, which is certainly good for the special administrative region. But eventually, isn't there going to be a price to pay? Already, we are told, mainlanders feel that Hong Kong people want Cepa, but not Article 23. There is clearly the hint of a quid pro quo.
As someone who has been living here for years, I have, quite unconsciously, come to accept certain phenomena as part of the way of life in Hong Kong. And yet, recent conversations with some foreign diplomats have raised fundamental questions about just how autonomous Hong Kong is, and whether decisions are actually made here or in Beijing.
One diplomat voiced surprise that there are so many Hong Kong delegations constantly travelling to Beijing, creating the impression that the capital is where the really important decisions regarding Hong Kong are made.
It made me recall the pre-handover period, when dozens of delegations streamed to Beijing to ask what they should do - and what they would not be permitted to do - after 1997.