Pope Francis has arrived in the town of Portacomaro (Asti), where he is planning a lunch with his cousin Carla to celebrate her ninetieth birthday and, in the early afternoon, a visit to the retirement home together with the mayor, Alessandro Bagliano, and the parish priest, Don Andrew.
Previously he had made a brief stop in the church of Portacomaro Stazione, the hamlet of Asti where the helicopter landed.
There were several hundred people waiting for the pontiff.
"Francisco querido Portacomaro esta contigo" is what we read on a banner.
Many school children: a group hung a cloth with the words "We are here in the cool (this morning the temperature was 2-3 degrees, ed) for Pope Francis, warm us up with a greeting".
