Pope Francis, in line with the faithful for the last farewell

The crowd is seen as soon as you leave the subway at the Ottaviano stop, the closest to San Pietro. You still do not see the dome yet but as soon as you start walking towards Piazza Risorgimento before and the Basilica of San Pietro Then what opens before the eyes is a sea inside which thousands of people move. They have come from all parts of the world, some are tourists who by chance found themselves in the place where an important piece of world history are making, others walk more shipped with a single goal: to lift themselves to raise the last farewell to the deceased pontiff. Today, with a very hot sun, the Basilica of San Pietro welcomed The body of Pope Francis. It was the day of translation.

One day full of emotion, also marked by silence. In the morning the pontiff’s coffin crossed Piazza San Pietro between applause, tears and looks raised to heaven. Together with many cell phones. Thousands of people, collected in a single suspended moment. Like Sabrina, who arrived from Turin and is just over 20 years old: “It is the first time that I attended a ceremony of this type and yesterday I decided to take the train because I wanted to feel inside the story in some way.”

The light wood coffin was placed in front of the altar of the confession, in the heart of the basilica. No cousing, by explicit will of Pope Franciswho had asked for a ritual as sober as possible, consistent with his choices made alive. A gesture that distinguishes him from his predecessors. On the last trip inside the Basilica, Pope Francis was accompanied by a solemn procession made up of cardinals, monsignors and representatives of the Roman Curia. Among them, too Sister Geneviève Jeanningroswho lives in caravan with the carousels of the Luna Lido Luna Park. Pope’s personal friend, who had always called him affectionately “the enfant terrible”. His presence, in tears next to the coffin, today tells who Francesco was, a pontiff as much as possible to listen.

The crowd in St. Peter’s Square

Anadolu/Getty Images

Outside the Basilica, meanwhile, thousands of people have started to line up since dawn. Someone from the previous night. There are those who squeeze a photo in your hands, who a rosary, who the flag of their country. There are those who speak softly and those who choose silence. There are those who pray, those who cry, those who simply observe and those who sing. «We arrived from Naples and we are willing to stay in line until tomorrow. For Pope Francis you have to do “Teresa, 55, says, while spreading the sun cream on her son’s face. Next to her a civil protection volunteer distributes bottles of water. “For us it has always been a guide and it will remain through the words he has pronounced and thanks to his writings”continues Giulio, 22 years old, who arrived with a scout group.

Both today that tomorrow it will be possible to pay homage to the pope’s body until midnight. On Friday until 7pm. Meanwhile, the fittings multiply, the giant screens take their seats and the deviations of the routes to manage the crowd increase by minute. For the day of the funeral, on Saturday 26 April, heads of state, religious delegations, representatives of every corner of the world and a crowd that promises to be immense. But here, in San Pietro, it is already. Today, more than ever, the Vatican is the center of a new geography of affection and collective memory.