Frail Pope to make Pompeii trip [View All]

VATICAN CITY (AP) -- As concern for his health mounted, Pope John Paul II presided at his general audience Wednesday and said that "God willing" he will visit a shrine in Pompeii next week.

The frail 83-year-old pope appeared alert and read his speeches in various languages at the audience attended by some 12,000 people in St. Peter's Square. He waved to the crowd as he was driven in an open vehicle around the square.

He said that "God willing, on Oct. 7" he would make a pilgrimage to a shrine dedicated to the Virgin Mary in Pompeii, near Naples.

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more: http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/10/01/pope.ap/index.html

Looks like October 7 may be big news not just in California's earthquake zone, but in volcano-infested Pompeii too......