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Pope Benedict XVI arrives in Cyprus today for a three day visit. The official welcoming ceremony will take place at Paphos International Airport, where he will be welcomed by President Demetris Christofias and his spouse Elsie.
 

A welcoming address by Christofias and a reply from the Pope will follow. After that the Pope will bless an olive tree which will be planted at a special place at Paphos International Airport in memory of the Pope’s visit to Cyprus.
 

Following this, he will visit the Church of Agia Kyriaki Chrysopolitissa in Kato Paphos where an ecumenical celebration will take place and he will then depart for Nicosia.
 

On Saturday the Pope and his entourage will visit the Presidential Palace in Nicosia where he will be welcomed by the President and his spouse. The Pontiff will lay a wreath at the statue of Archbishop Makarios III.
 

Other places he will visit on Saturday include Saint Marons’s school, Statue of the Late Archbishop Makarios and the Cathedral and  the Byzantine Museum. He will end the day with a visit to the Apostolic Nunciature, where a Holy Mass will take place.
 

On Sunday, the Pope will be at the Eleftheria Sports Centre in Nicosia where Holy Mass will take place. In the afternoon, the Pope will visit the Maronite Cathedral of Our Lady of Graces.

Later on in the day the Pope and his entourage will leave for Larnaca Airport where the official farewell ceremony will take place. During the ceremony speeches will be delivered by the Cyprus President and the Pontiff. The Pope will again bless an olive tree that will be planted at a later stage at a special place at Larnaca International Airport, as a reminiscence of the Pope’s visit to Cyprus.

Farewells of the respective delegations will follow. The Pope and his entourage will leave the island at around 18:15 local time.