Pope Benedict’s trip to Australia began this morning at 10.30 AM with his departure from Rome Fiumicino Airport on a B777 aircraft on Alitalia flight Az 4000. This will be the Pope’s longest trip in his Papacy so far, considering both length of stay (9 days) and distance. As a matter of fact, the Holy Father will reach Sydney after a 21-hour flight, including a technical stop-over in Darwin, Australia. Tomorrow morning, after arriving in Sydney, His Holiness will rest for a few days somewhere in Australia before taking part in the WYD celebrations. The first event scheduled for the Pope for WYD will be on July, 17. After celebrating a private Mass in the Chapel of Sydney’s St. Mary’s Cathedral House, he will attend the welcome ceremony in the local Government House. From there, the Holy Father will go to the "Mary McKillop Memorial" for a short prayer and then to Sydney’s Admiralty House to pay a courtesy visit to the Governor General before meeting with the Prime Minister. In the late morning, His Holiness will reach St. Mary’s Cathedral House and then Sydney’s Rose Bay Wharf to be briefly greeted by the Aborigines with traditional dances and songs.
