Pope John Paul II Paul II made trips to 129 countries, travelling more than while doing so. He consistently attracted large crowds, some among the largest ever assembled in human history, such as the Manila World Youth Day, which gathered up to four million people, the largest Papal gathering ever, according to the Vatican. John Paul II's earliest official visits were to the Dominican Republic and Mexico in January 1979. While some of his trips (such as to the United States and the Holy Land) were to places previously visited by Pope Paul VI, John Paul II became the first pope to visit the
Pope John Paul II Day Pope John Paul II Day Pope John Paul II Day is a Polish festival celebrated every year on October 16. It was established by the Polish Parliament as a tribute to Pope John Paul II. In parallel, it is celebrated by the Catholic Church in Poland as Papal Day, which falls on the Sunday preceding the anniversary of the election of Karol Wojtyła as Pope. On October 16, 1978, the Archbishop of Kraków Cardinal, Karol Wojtyła was elected as Pope and took the name John Paul II. He was the first Pope in 455 years who was not Italian. On