Vatican City: Pope John Paul, looking fairly alert and waving to crowds of well-wishers, left hospital yesterday and returned to the Vatican 18 days after he underwent throat surgery to relieve severe breathing problems.
The 84-year-old Pope left the hospital riding in the front seat of a grey van just five hours after his departure was announced.
He was wearing his traditional white cassock and blessed the crowds from behind the glass as his motorcade made its way to the Vatican some 4 km away.
"I was very impressed with him because he looks quite lively, he didn't look very sick," said Roger, a British tourist who saw the Pope as he returned to the Vatican.
In what appeared to be an attempt to reassure Catholics, a Vatican television cameraman sat behind the Pope in the van and broadcast live footage of the back of the Pope's head as he waved and blessed people lining the motorcade route.
Earlier yesterday, the Pope reassured Catholics himself by speaking directly to the faithful from his hospital window for the first time since he underwent a tracheotomy on February 24th.
But it was still unclear when and how the Pope, whose breathing problems were exacerbated by Parkinson's disease, will resume his ceremonial activities as head of the Roman Catholic Church.
The Vatican has said he will decide himself what role he will play in Holy Week activities which begin on Palm Sunday, March 20th, and end a week later on Easter Sunday.
For the first time in his 26-year-old papacy he has delegated senior cardinals to preside at nearly all Holy Week services - one of the busiest periods of the Church calendar.
He is expected to make brief appearances at some of them and may be linked up to the faithful at others via television.
He will be continuing breathing and speech rehabilitation therapy in the Vatican and is believed to still have a tube in his throat to help air get to his lungs.
"Dear brothers and sisters, welcome, thank you for your visit," he said in clear Italian from the hospital window.
In Polish he then greeted pilgrims from his birthplace in the southern town of Wadowice.
He concluded his brief appearance at the window by saying in Italian: "Greetings in Christ. A good Sunday and good rest of the week to everyone."