Pope to Holiday at Secret Location in Australia, AFP, May 2, 2008

Pope to Holiday at Secret Location in Australia

AFP
May 2, 2008

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5if7eqeqP8VFLGmT7Xlvpv5MK6u7g

SYDNEY — Pope Benedict XVI will holiday at a secret location in Australia before World Youth Day in Sydney in July, event organisers said Friday.

Sydney Archbishop George Pell said the pope would arrive in Australia on July 13 and leave on July 21, taking three days vacation before attending World Youth Day.

Pope Benedict XVI

Event organisers said the 81-year-old pontiff "has decided to spend several days preparing for his encounter with young people" following the lengthy flight to Australia from Rome.

"The trip to Australia will be the longest journey the Holy Father has ever undertaken," World Youth Day coordinator Anthony Fisher said, adding organisers had selected a holiday destination for the Pope that was "beautiful and suitable for the leader of the world's Catholics."

"He will have the opportunity to see some of Australia's beautiful flora and fauna," Fisher said.

"We cannot, of course, disclose the location; he is a head of state seeking private time and has asked that that privacy be respected."

The pope will be officially welcomed to Sydney in a harbourside ceremony on July 17.

Organisers have said they expect World Youth Day to attract some 125,000 international visitors to Australia's largest city.

The trip has sparked complaints over the costs involved after it was revealed that taxpayers would contribute 86 million Australian dollars (80.4 million US dollars) towards the event.

New South Wales state Premier Morris Iemma defended spending taxpayers' money, saying it would showcase Sydney to a global audience while generating 150 million dollars in revenue.

Catholics make up about a quarter of Australia's population of some 21 million people.

The first World Youth Day was held in Rome in 1986 and is now held in an international host city every two to three years. The last was in Cologne, Germany, in 2005.