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's relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church Pope John Paul II's relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church Pope John Paul II's relations with the Eastern Orthodox Church were marked by a significant improvement in relations between Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. In May 1999, Pope John Paul II visited Romania on the invitation from Patriarch Teoctist of the Romanian Orthodox Church. This was the first time a Pope had visited a predominantly Eastern Orthodox country since the East-West Schism in 1054, the event that separated Eastern Orthodoxy and Western Catholicism. On his arrival, the Patriarch and the President of Romania, Emil Constantinescu, greeted the Pope. The Patriarch