Hi there-I will be going to Rome at the beginning of June. We will only have 2 1/2 days there so time is important. I am not Catholic but I am interested to see the Pope anyway. We will not be there on a Wed so we were going to try to go for the Sun. blessing at 12. Is it worth tying up that whole day? I'm concerned it will just be hundreds and hundreds of people and you can't really see him. Thanks in advance for your advice!
Posted by
Land of La
8655 posts
Of course there will be hundreds and hundreds of people. He's The Pope. You go for the experience and if you don't want THAT experience then don't go.
http://community.iexplore.com/planning/journalEntryActivity.asp?JournalID=18257&EntryID=25928&n=Seeing%20the%20Pope&t=Popular%20Sights
Posted by
OP
HI
100 posts
I guess I was trying to determine if people felt it was still a meaningful experience or if I shouldn't waste my time. Thanks.
Posted by
Lincoln, NE, USA
390 posts
We saw Pope John Paul II in '04 and it definitely didn't tie up the whole day. We got there at 11:30, looked around for a bit, he appeared in the window, said some stuff we couldn't understand, people cheered, and it was over in 10 minutes. Then we headed into St. Peters and moved on with our day. I'm not catholic either, but I'm glad we did it. It was neat seeing him, even though he was in very bad health and difficult to understand. It was very cool to see how many people loved him, with their signs and banners and flags from all over the world, praying in dozens of languages. It was crowded, but not horribly. I'm not sure about Benedict, but PJP2 was very high up so everyone could see him.
Posted by
SF Bay Area, CA
2030 posts
I saw the Pope give his Sunday message via wide screen TVs in St. Peter's square last September (he was at his vacation villa outside Rome at the time). The square was crowded, but not unbearable, and most everyone was paying attention to the speach. Lasted about 20 minutes and then the crowd broke up. If you're visiting the Vatican, Catholic or not, it's pretty much the ultimate experience -- when in Rome....
Posted by
XXX
1170 posts
BG, I like how and what you said :-)
Posted by
OP
HI
100 posts
Thanks everyone! You've convinced me to go and now I'm actually really excited to see him. As you said, when in Rome...