A Glimpse of Pope Francis

An hour-long drive across Metro Manila, a tricycle-ride from Lucky Chinatown to Jones Bridge, a 20-minute walk from Jones Bridge to Padre Burgos Avenue, and a 30-minute wait along the street – all for a few seconds of watching Pope Francis pass by.   Our less than 3-hour sojourn is really nothing compared to the hours many Catholic faithfuls endured to catch a glimpse of the Pope and to listen to him as he officiated Mass and delivered inspirational messages.

My mom’s fervent desire to personally see the Pope and my Catholic friends’ willingness to endure long hours of waiting is definitely understandable; but, what’s a non-Catholic doing among the throngs of devotees yearning to see the Pope? Simply All For the Love of Mom!  🙂

My Mom’s a devout Catholic and I knew how much she’d love to see Pope Francis.  Although I was quite worried about the crowd and the long walk we had to take, I didn’t want her to miss the chance of seeing the beloved Pope in person.

Contrary to what I expected, our adventure (more like a pilgrimage for my mom) was quite a pleasant experience.  The weather was perfect with the cloudy sky and cool air and the crowd was not as thick as I feared.  My mom was filled with immense joy when she saw the Pope.  Tears of joy streaked down her face as it beamed with happiness.  The long walk was definitely worth it!

A dear friend of mine shared with us a media brief so we arrived at Anda Circle just several minutes before the Pope passed. If we had followed the schedules listed on popular websites, we would have waited there for more than a couple of hours.  To our dear angel (you know who you are), THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Here are the photos taken by my husband using his Samsung S4.

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These sacristans from Laguna who had been waiting there since 7am were kind enough to make space for us so the kids could stay right in front to see the Pope. The police officers in our area were also very pleasant and even exchanged a few good laughs with us. 😀

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Pope Francis’ charisma reminds me so much of the affable Pope John Paul II

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Yes, we were THIS close to the Pope!

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