THE VATICAN: Pope John Paul will go ahead with a 10-day visit to Canada, Guatemala and Mexico next month. But he will take time off for rest at the beginning of the trip, the Vatican said yesterday.
A Vatican spokesman had previously suggested the ailing 82-year-old Pope might drop Mexico and Guatemala from his itinerary after attending World Day of Youth celebrations from July 23rd to 28th in Toronto.
The Pope, who is suffering from Parkinson's disease, appeared particularly weak during a five-day trip to Azerbaijan and Bulgaria in May, where severe mobility problems were clearly evident.
But the Vatican confirmed yesterday that the Pope would visit both Guatemala and Mexico as well as Canada during his 97th official foreign journey.
However, the first couple of days in Canada have been set aside for private time, apparently so that the Pope can recover from jet lag.
After the welcome ceremony at the airport he will be flown by helicopter to Strawberry Island, a summer resort on Canada's Lake Simcoe, and will not appear in public again until July 25th for a Day of Youth event in Toronto.
He will also spend Friday, July 26th back on Strawberry Island without any public appointments, before returning to Toronto for two and a half days of official and religious visits.
The Pope will continue on to Guatemala city on July 29th and 30th where he is due to canonise a 17th-century missionary.
The last stop of the tour will be Mexico City. The Pope will arrive on July 30th and leave for Rome on August 1st.
In Mexico, he will canonise the Indian Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin, whose visions of the Virgin Mary in the 16th century helped the Catholic Church in its drive to convert indigenous people.