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Over the last year post has been busy with preparation for the first visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Australia; as we counted down the days to the his departure, Ambassador Anne Plunkett joined the rest of the embassy team (Counsellor and one LES) in Rome to farewell the Pope.
Ambassador Plunkett made last calls on the Vatican officials travelling with the Pope and hosted a reception for the 45 journalists who would travel on the papal plane to cover the Pope’s visit and World Youth Day, the Catholic Event which would rock Sydney in July with over hundreds of thousands of pilgrims descending on the city from Australia and around the world.
The reception was low key in the cool courtyard setting of Palazzo Cardinal Cesi. The Ambassador addressed the journalists with warm wishes of safe travel and assurances of welcome to Australia. The journalist, visibly enthusiastic about their impending trip, received substantial media kits introducing Australia and Australian Government Policies in areas such as Climate Change, Environment, Inter-religious Dialogue etc.
On the morning of 12 July, Ambassador Plunkett and Counsellor gathered with Italian Government and Church dignitaries at Fiumicino airport, where they formed a motorcade to descend on the tarmac at the foot of the Papal charter plane. In a brief but joyous farewell Ambassador and Counsellor handed a book of photographs of Australia to the Pope and wished him well for his apostolic journey.
The Pope went on to take Sydney and Australia by storm leading hundreds of youth in the celebration of World Youth Day.
