On arrival, Ecuadorian president Rafael Correa greeted Jorge
Mario Bergoglio referring to a joke in which Dilma Rousseff had said God must be Brazilian. “If God is Brazilian and the Pope is Argentinian, I am sure
Ecuador is Paradise” said Correa as Pope Francis smiled.
The Pope thanked President Correa for the warm welcome in a country where over
85% of the population identify as Catholic. His speech was brief as he focused on South America and the issue of inequality as well as calling for
dialogue in a nation that has seen a series of protests for the past 3 weeks over inheritance tax bills.
As he left the airport’s tarmac, the Pope was greeted by
thousands of people lining the roads that wanted a glimpse of the
charismatic church leader. Monica Cabezas was one of the people that waited
over 4 hours to get a glimpse of the Pope and described the few seconds she was able to see him pass as "surreal".
Jorge Mario Bergoglio will head to Ecuador’s largest city,
Guayaquil, tomorrow morning and will come back to Quito on Tuesday to address
thousands of worshippers in mass before heading to Bolivia.
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