11.   Castro is one the few world leaders the pope has never met and Cuba is the only Latin American nation John Paul has not visited.

12.   Faltas said the call took place while the pope was meeting with Michel Sabbah, the Latin Patriarch for the Holy Land, in Rome.

13.   Friday morning, the pope met with President Fernando Henrique Cardoso, who earlier this year became the first sitting Brazilian president to visit the pope in the Vatican.

14.   In a series of audiences, the pope was meeting with ambassadors from nine countries, bishops from Pakistan and European car manufacturers.

15.   In the evening, the pope meets with President Zedillo at the presidential residence.

16.   In the evening, returning to Abuja, the pope met with Islamic leaders and warned of the danger of religious fanatacism.

17.   Later Monday, the pope met with young Roman Catholics who packed the courtyard and chapel of the Catholic cathedral in Old Damascus.

18.   Neither the Vatican nor the Cuban government have named other people the pope will meet during his five-day trip.

19.   Normally, the pope meets with the public each Wednesday in sessions that can last as long as nearly two hours.

20.   On Saturday, the pope meets Irish President Mary Robinson at the Vatican.