Pope John Paul II's Beatification in Rome

We were in Vatican in time for Pope John Paul II’s beatification last May 1.  Though we were there as early as 6am, we were not able to get inside St. Peter’s Square anymore since the square and its vicinity were apparently jampacked already by 3am! 

An estimated 1.5M people from all over the world came to Rome to attend the beatification. We just stayed in one of the plazas just outside the Vatican Museum where a big screen was set up for the telecast.  And even just there in the plaza, it was so jampacked that there’s barely room to move!  When I had to go to the toilet, I wasn’t able to go back anymore to the spot where our tour mates were because it was just impossible to pass through.

Check out how crowded it was -

 

People climbed trees, lamp posts and even on top of the portalets just to get a good view of the live telecast.

People of all colors and ages were there.  And even if we spoke different languages, it was just amazing how united everyone was that day.


During the day, we heard from someone that the remains of Blessed JP2 will be available for public viewing in the next 24 hrs or so, so the next day, we took a chance to go to St. Peter’s Square.  

After a mass officiated by the Pope’s secretary, a thick crowd lined up to view his remains and we joined the queue.  

 

It took us 3 hours to get inside St Peter's Basilica but it was all worth the wait. 

BTW, here’s a cute photo of Blessed JP2 as a toddler. I saw it in one of the exhibits around Rome. So cute. :)

Blessed JP2's childhood photo