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CNN Live At Daybreak
Pope Visits Croatia
Aired June 06, 2003 - 05:34 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Eighty-three-year-old Pope John Paul II is making his 100th pilgrimage, this time to Croatia.
Our Alessio Vinci joins us via video phone with more on why the pope is in the Balkans.
And I hear his voice was loud and strong, although he looks rather frail -- Alessio.
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, hello to you.
He looks frail but he looks much better than a year ago. Pope John Paul II arrived here in Croatia yesterday. He arrived from Rome. He landed here to a cheering crowd of several tens of thousands of people, both at the airport and then here behind me in the port of Rijeka, a port that he reached during a brief journey on a catamaran.
Pope John Paul II holds this country very much dear to his heart. It was this pope that recognized Croatia's independence back in 1992, among the first countries to recognize Croatia's independence back then.
Today, Pope John Paul II is in Dubrovnik, a beautiful coastline town in the southern tip of Croatia bordering two other former Yugoslav republics of Bosnia and Montenegro. He is celebrating out there now an open air mass. Several tens of thousands of people again gathered to listen to the pontiff. He is during this mass to beatify a Croatian nun, a woman who founded the Daughters of Mercy religious order. It's basically a group of nuns, 406 of them today scattered throughout the world in 12 countries around the world, mainly helping the young children with education and also tending the needs of the elders.
This pope looks much better than a year ago. His traveling staff telling us that what the pope is doing is basically taking a long rest. The pope is all day today, at least 12 hours away from Rijeka. He's going to come back here tonight to overnight, but during throughout the day there will be long periods of rest. This is how the pope manages to go on, even if he's so old and frail -- back to you, Carol.
COSTELLO: You're not kidding. He's in his late 80s. He has Parkinson's. But he seems to be going strong. Does he have any more travel plans after he leaves Croatia?
VINCI: He does, indeed. He will remain here till five days. He returns to Rome on Monday and then later this month he travels to another Balkan republic. He goes to Bosnia-Herzegovina for a one day trip there. And then there is another planned trip to Slovakia later this year and even talks of another trip, possibly to Mongolia, although yesterday the secretary of state of the Vatican, if you want, the prime minister of the Vatican, talking to reporters on the catamaran coming here told us that that trip may not happen because, indeed, again, the pope is old and frail. But I can tell you, I've taken many, many trips with the pope. Every time we are here there are talks of more trips. His staff, the pope's staff says those trips may not happen because of his health, but in the end it is the pope who decides and this pope plans to travel more and more.
Back to you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, I don't think he plans to retire any time soon.
Alessio Vinci, thanks very much, live from Croatia this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired June 6, 2003 - 05:34 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Eighty-three-year-old Pope John Paul II is making his 100th pilgrimage, this time to Croatia.
Our Alessio Vinci joins us via video phone with more on why the pope is in the Balkans.
And I hear his voice was loud and strong, although he looks rather frail -- Alessio.
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, hello to you.
He looks frail but he looks much better than a year ago. Pope John Paul II arrived here in Croatia yesterday. He arrived from Rome. He landed here to a cheering crowd of several tens of thousands of people, both at the airport and then here behind me in the port of Rijeka, a port that he reached during a brief journey on a catamaran.
Pope John Paul II holds this country very much dear to his heart. It was this pope that recognized Croatia's independence back in 1992, among the first countries to recognize Croatia's independence back then.
Today, Pope John Paul II is in Dubrovnik, a beautiful coastline town in the southern tip of Croatia bordering two other former Yugoslav republics of Bosnia and Montenegro. He is celebrating out there now an open air mass. Several tens of thousands of people again gathered to listen to the pontiff. He is during this mass to beatify a Croatian nun, a woman who founded the Daughters of Mercy religious order. It's basically a group of nuns, 406 of them today scattered throughout the world in 12 countries around the world, mainly helping the young children with education and also tending the needs of the elders.
This pope looks much better than a year ago. His traveling staff telling us that what the pope is doing is basically taking a long rest. The pope is all day today, at least 12 hours away from Rijeka. He's going to come back here tonight to overnight, but during throughout the day there will be long periods of rest. This is how the pope manages to go on, even if he's so old and frail -- back to you, Carol.
COSTELLO: You're not kidding. He's in his late 80s. He has Parkinson's. But he seems to be going strong. Does he have any more travel plans after he leaves Croatia?
VINCI: He does, indeed. He will remain here till five days. He returns to Rome on Monday and then later this month he travels to another Balkan republic. He goes to Bosnia-Herzegovina for a one day trip there. And then there is another planned trip to Slovakia later this year and even talks of another trip, possibly to Mongolia, although yesterday the secretary of state of the Vatican, if you want, the prime minister of the Vatican, talking to reporters on the catamaran coming here told us that that trip may not happen because, indeed, again, the pope is old and frail. But I can tell you, I've taken many, many trips with the pope. Every time we are here there are talks of more trips. His staff, the pope's staff says those trips may not happen because of his health, but in the end it is the pope who decides and this pope plans to travel more and more.
Back to you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, I don't think he plans to retire any time soon.
Alessio Vinci, thanks very much, live from Croatia this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
