POLAND: Some were exhausted, some were ill and hungry, but no one complained.
Nearly three million Poles who packed the Blonia meadows yesterday for Pope John Paul's only open-air Mass on his ninth trip home knew it might be their last chance to see the man they thank for the freedom they now enjoy.
Fearing for their beloved but increasingly frail Pope and taking advantage of the Mass, Poles came to Krakow in record numbers, making it the largest gathering the Pope has ever addressed in his homeland.
The Pontiff, who sweetened Poland's bitter communist years, offered them consolation amid economic hardships afflicting the country as it strives to join the European Union.
"It was worth the packed train ride, the standing on one leg in the train corridor, just to see the Pope," said Maria Sobarnia, a 44-year-old pensioner, who arrived in Blonia at 1.30 in the morning for the 9 a.m. Mass.
Nearly half the crowd had already gathered in the damp field outside the ancient city of Krakow at dawn to make sure they caught a glimpse of the trembling and stooped Pope as he rode towards the altar.
"The train was packed. People sat everywhere, on the floor, in the corridors. But it was wonderful. We sang religious songs and everyone was going to see the Holy Father," she said, leaning against the wooden railing along the route the Pope took on his way to celebrate mass.
During the night, many pilgrims fought the cold and tried to get some rest in sleeping bags strewn across the meadow or bought coffee from girl scouts to keep warm.
"I got here at 2 a.m. after a four-hour drive. It was hard to sleep, we were cold despite the sleeping bags. Around 5 a.m. the place was almost full," said Lukasz Cieplucha, an 18-year-old student from the central city of Lodz.
Others, like Barbara Sawa, a pensioner who arrived at 11 p.m. on Saturday, prayed.
"I didn't want to come to Mass straight from the road. I was rested from the night before and wanted to pray," said Ms Sawa, shooting a glance at her 25-year-old son nearby.
"And it was a great time to speak with my son. About our problems, my daughter who lives abroad and all the grandchildren. I prayed for their future and their well-being."
The cold of the night soon turned into scorching heat.
Emergency service volunteers worked the field to distribute water bottles and help the hundreds of pilgrims who fainted during the three-hour Mass. Dozens needed hospital treatment.
Such was the size of the crowds that, four hours after the Mass was over, people were still trickling out from the meadow, some wilted with lack of sleep, leaving crushed grass and thousands of empty water bottles in their wake.
Others were still waving flags in the white and yellow colours of the Vatican as they carried rolled-up mats and fleece jackets back to their cars or to the railway station.