A long, uncertain wait finally paid off for dozens of Romans on Thursday as Pope John Paul II emerged from a nine-day hospital stay aboard his trademark ‘Popemobile’.
"There he is, there he is!" they shouted, applauding as the 84-year-old pontiff came into view, six motorcycles flanking the vehicle known the world over from his dozens of foreign trips over the 26 years of his pontificate.
John Paul II, accompanied by his two Polish private secretaries, appeared tired and drawn as he raised his right hand in acknowledgement. The papal motorcade made a short sweep of Saint Peter's Square, where a small crowd of pilgrims had gathered, before entering the Vatican via the city's Arco delle Campana gate.
