Pope bids farewell to crowd from hospital balcony before departing Rome’s Gemelli hospital.
The 88-year-old, who was admitted to the hospital on February 14, bid farewell to his supporters on Sunday from a hospital balcony before his departure.
In a wheelchair, alongside which he has been for some time, the Pope smiled, waved, and gave a thumbs-up to the group of well-wishers gathered below.
The Pope, whose face appeared swollen, only stayed for a brief time.
Francis, with a faint voice, took a moment to thank an elderly woman in the crowd who had brought him yellow flowers.
On Saturday, one of his doctors announced that the leader of the Roman Catholic Church would be discharged on Sunday and advised him to rest for two months at the Vatican.
Francis had only been visible to the public once during his hospital stay, captured in a photo the Vatican released last week, showing the pontiff in prayer at a hospital chapel.
Before the Pope’s appearance on Sunday, the crowd of hundreds of well-wishers called out for him, repeatedly chanting “Francis, Francis, Francis”.
