Advertisement

Pope Francis lands in Ecuador to start 3-nation South America tour

By Doug G. Ware
Pope Francis embarked on a three-nation South American tour Sunday -- during which he will visit Ecuador, Bolivia and Paraguay, which are three of the continent's four poorest countries. Photo by Stefano Spaziani/UPI
Pope Francis embarked on a three-nation South American tour Sunday -- during which he will visit Ecuador, Bolivia and Paraguay, which are three of the continent's four poorest countries. Photo by Stefano Spaziani/UPI | License Photo

QUITO, Ecuador, July 5 (UPI) -- Pope Francis touched down Sunday in his home continent of South America on Sunday to begin a three-nation tour -- his first as Catholic leader.

The pope left the Vatican Sunday morning and headed to Quito, Ecuador. He landed there at around 4 p.m. EDT, where he was met with a youth orchestra, local dignitaries and strong winds that blew off his iconic white skullcap, CNN reported.

Advertisement

"Dear friends, I begin my visit filled with excitement and hope for the days ahead," the pontiff said in a speech at Quito's Mariscal Sucre International Airport. "From the peak of Chimborazo to the Pacific coast; from the Amazon rainforest to the Galapagos Islands, may you never lose the ability to thank God for what he has done and is doing for you."

After visiting Ecuador, Francis will visit Bolivia and Paraguay. It's the first time the Argentine-born pope will visit three nations in a single trip, the Miami Herald reported.

The trip, which will take Francis to three of South America's poorest nations, will run through July 12.

Advertisement

When he visits the coastal city of Guayaquil on Monday, the pope will visit with Father Francisco Cortes -- an old friend he hasn't seen in three decades, the Wall Street Journal reported. Cortes is 91 years old and knew Francis during the 1980s when he was still known as Jorge Mario Bergoglio.

"Normally, a pope is a very distant figure," Cortés said in the Journal report. "But with Francis, it is the exact opposite. We feel him so close, among us and one of ours in a way that few could are."

"For me, it is an act of humility to remember a person who is nothing special," he added.

The pontiff will face extreme heat and high elevations during his trip -- conditions very different than he sees in Rome. Quito sits at more than 9,000 feet above sea level, and Bolivian capital La Paz at 12,000.

Francis will visit the United States for nearly a week in September. He will tour and give speeches at stops in Washington, D.C., New York City and Philadelphia.

Latest Headlines