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CNN Live At Daybreak
Pope in Croatia to Beautify Nun
Aired June 06, 2003 - 06:02 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: Despite looking rather frail, Pope John Paul II's voice rang out loud and clear in Croatia. He's there this morning. It's his third trip to the Balkan nation and his landmark 100th pilgrimage since becoming pope.
Our Rome bureau chief Alessio Vinci joins us live via videophone from Croatia.
Good morning -- Alessio.
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF: Good morning to you, Carol.
Pope John Paul II may be old, frail and suffering from Parkinson's disease, but he has shown no intention of stopping his pilgrimages around the world. As you mentioned, 100 trips, that is 179 countries visited in 25 years of his pontificate, 700,000 miles covered -- that's three times the distance between here and the moon -- 2,300 speeches delivered in more than 600 cities, some of them visited more than once, an incredible pope.
And today, tens of thousands of people have gathered in the southern city of Dubrovnik in southern Croatia. It is a town -- a beautiful town that lies right very close to the border of two other former Yugoslav republics, Bosnia and Montenegro. People from all over the region have converged there.
It is a beautiful and sunny day, a bit hot perhaps for those who have been waiting for him in the square for hours even just to get a glimpse of him. But this is a man, I'm telling you, that has reached celebrity status like no others in the past. And even if this were a rainy day, I can assure you that people would still be out there to listen to him.
In the crowd, as usually happen, the flags of the Vatican, the yellow and white flags, but I've seen also a lot of flags from the neighboring countries; from Albania, for example. Country -- flags also from Poland, the native country of the pope, and even a banner of (UNINTELLIGIBLE) holding a banner saying, "We love you."
The pope today will spend a total of 12 hours away from (UNINTELLIGIBLE). That's up here in the north where he was overnight, although his staff has planned long hours of rest after lunch. He will have lunch with the bishop of Dubrovnik later today. It is also, again, planning a long rest, not just for the pope, he needs it, but also for the people who follow him around.
Back to you -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Definitely so. Alessio Vinci reporting live from Croatia.
The pope is in his late 80s, he suffers from Parkinson's disease, but he seems to be still going strong, and to a receptive crowd in Croatia. That country is about 80 percent Catholic.
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 - 06:02 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Despite looking rather frail, Pope John Paul II's voice rang out loud and clear in Croatia. He's there this morning. It's his third trip to the Balkan nation and his landmark 100th pilgrimage since becoming pope.
Our Rome bureau chief Alessio Vinci joins us live via videophone from Croatia.
Good morning -- Alessio.
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF: Good morning to you, Carol.
Pope John Paul II may be old, frail and suffering from Parkinson's disease, but he has shown no intention of stopping his pilgrimages around the world. As you mentioned, 100 trips, that is 179 countries visited in 25 years of his pontificate, 700,000 miles covered -- that's three times the distance between here and the moon -- 2,300 speeches delivered in more than 600 cities, some of them visited more than once, an incredible pope.
And today, tens of thousands of people have gathered in the southern city of Dubrovnik in southern Croatia. It is a town -- a beautiful town that lies right very close to the border of two other former Yugoslav republics, Bosnia and Montenegro. People from all over the region have converged there.
It is a beautiful and sunny day, a bit hot perhaps for those who have been waiting for him in the square for hours even just to get a glimpse of him. But this is a man, I'm telling you, that has reached celebrity status like no others in the past. And even if this were a rainy day, I can assure you that people would still be out there to listen to him.
In the crowd, as usually happen, the flags of the Vatican, the yellow and white flags, but I've seen also a lot of flags from the neighboring countries; from Albania, for example. Country -- flags also from Poland, the native country of the pope, and even a banner of (UNINTELLIGIBLE) holding a banner saying, "We love you."
The pope today will spend a total of 12 hours away from (UNINTELLIGIBLE). That's up here in the north where he was overnight, although his staff has planned long hours of rest after lunch. He will have lunch with the bishop of Dubrovnik later today. It is also, again, planning a long rest, not just for the pope, he needs it, but also for the people who follow him around.
Back to you -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Definitely so. Alessio Vinci reporting live from Croatia.
The pope is in his late 80s, he suffers from Parkinson's disease, but he seems to be still going strong, and to a receptive crowd in Croatia. That country is about 80 percent Catholic.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
