down outside st. patricks. up. it has the vatican flag. perhaps that is the vehicle. joe, i don't know if you can see these pictures. talk about some of what we are seeing here but you can talk a little bit about what is going to be happening as the pope makes his way down 5th avenue. >> that is the pope's fiat. that is the license plate. vatican city state number one for the pope. that was the fiat we saw here at saint patrick's cathedral 30 minutes ago. no question that is his car ready to take the pope. anxious anticipation on 5th avenue. the best thing that happened here, diana, the sun has gown down. it's cool and comfortable if

is the night to do it. american at the of flashing lights. traffic has been blocked off for hours. some of the people have been standing around since early this afternoon and here we are at 6:00. everybody is holding up well. you are warned once you get to your spot you can't leave your location. a quit bathroom run is not going to happen. everybody is standing by waiting for the pope to arrive. you can't see the binder that i wanted to show everyone. we will stay on the pictures of the pope there. when we have a minute i will show it to you. the binder given to us to study for homework, i have thinned it out. it's a couple hundred pages. after he went through washington we got rid of that. as i looked at the services tonight, the vespers plenty of

song, prayers, mostly a time of prayers and just a perfect moment of reflection inside this magnificent house of worship. that will be upcoming and a site sight to see as the night goes on. >> good evening, you are watching "eyewitness news at 6:00." joe thank you very much. i'm liz cho with bill ritter. you are looking at live pictures at wall street. that p if you look in the back seat, you can see pope francis. >> that is a fiat. >> you can see pope francis sitting in the back seat with secret service with him as they get ready to begin this motorcade heading north and up to st. patrick's cathedral. >> the pope left washington about ten minutes. he was supposed to leave at ten to four. he left about 4:25 landing at j.f.k.

about 5:09. we don't believe, we didn't see it land but we believe it came in around the same time as the delta flight. now that we begin "eyewitness news at 6:00" the pope's leg of the first trip ever to new york city with quite a view of the skyline, association l he is driving in are a car sandwiched between secret service s.u.v.'s. i'm sure it's secure. a small car, modest by any standard but in keeping with the pope's philosophy and his vows as a jesuit of poverty and i'm looking. looks like there are three secret service on board this little car and the pope there. they are talking to him.

apparently the fdr then take a motorcade short of saint pat's, in the popemobile and a few blocks of a little parade down manhattan's ritzy yeast avenue, 5th avenue. there will be 8-foot fences blocking the pope from looking at life on the street. there are people who are ticketed. >> we have seen huge crowds and huge security. if you have been watching the coverage all day long, you know the extremely busy day thated pope has had and still has a full evening in front of him. you can't help but marvel about the stamina this man has and the energy that he has. even as he came off the plane a short time ago, about an hour or so ago, came out with a huge smile and still managed to work the crowds that were there, that waited hours to see him,

some of the people there who handed him a pope doll of himself and had a chuckle. there are pope dolls for sale around the city. we are joined by father matt malone, the publisher of -- the youngest catholic publisher in the country. >> youngest editor and chief of the magazine. >> you are a just with it like the pope -- jesuit like the pope is. >> what an extraordinary way to be introduced to the united states of america. he has never been though this country before. he hasn't watched television in 15 years. he doesn't know us by the

this is coming off the heels of this triumphant journey to washington, the capitol of our country, comes to the capitol of the world. i can only imagine what he will think of 5th avenue. >> for someone like himself coming from the vatican but what is it like to walk into saint patrick's for the first time. it's the center of catholicism for the united states. >> yeah, i think that's fair to say. and cardinal dolan told me recently, one of the things the pope said, he wanted to see the cathedral, he wanted to see saint patrick's because it's a rich symbol. >> we will ask you to stay around for the rest of the show and vespers. we begin with stacey sager. she is in midtown near saint pat's with the people. you are in a secure zone, right, stacey. >> we are.

we have an iphone like everybody else so we don't have beer with us. crowds of people. some of these people have been here since 7:00 this morning. some came from other countries actually and they came here from across our country. i interviewed people from las vegas today and many of these people will be waiting for hours and hours. i can tell you we have seen mayor de blasio in this crowd greeting people. as you heard sade and joe talking earlier, we have seen chuck schumer. it has been very exciting. these people will only get a glimpse of the pope for mainly 30 seconds. they say it's worth the wait. they are excited. they have special tickets to get in here. we are live on 5th avenue and we will post updates throughout the evening on facebook. >> awesome. that is all on the iphone. >> a couple of blocks away from

stacey is jim dolan outside the secure zone. you are like 48th and 7th is that roughly where you are? >> reporter: bill, 49th street. first i want to show you how deep this crowd is. these folks don't have any tickets. they don't get to go in to an area where they can see the pope clearly. look how deep it is. all these folks come from all over the country to maybe get a glimpse of the pope. come up here, mark, let's show folks where we are. this isaacs -- this is sak's across the street. all these people are hoping that maybe threat get a shot. we spoke to a woman down from westchester. she had to see the pope. >> i am here to see the pope, i hope to get a glimpse of him. i feel he is all about love and understanding and tolerance and that means a lot to me. >> reporter: that is reason enough. >> it is and sit here forever and ever.

>> reporter: what do you think of the crowds. >> i am glad they are out to see him. it's a wonderful thing. it shows that he is more to a lot -- important to a lot of people. >> reporter: it does. take a look at what this crowd looks like. all these folks strange to get a shot. strange to get a picture of the pope as he goes by. they will see him briefly but all of them here think it's worth it. it's a huge crowd here. most of them probably won't see anyway. reporting live from the east side, jim dolan, channel 7 eyewitness news. >> typically we could show you the pope on his way making his way up -- >> but -- >> no helicopters are allowed in the air as a security precaution so right now we cannot show you that until he gets into the popemobile and makes the final approach into st. patrick's. burkett.

>> he is nearby where jim was. >> reporter: 49th and sixth avenue. look at the traffic. extraordinary obviously because so many streets are closed down. this is where the security zone begins. you can see the canine units, the sand trucks. you can see all the people who are here hoping against hope somehow to get out on to 5th avenue to get a glimpse, a brush with pope francis and obviously that is not happening. we are not happy about it. milton saul came all the way here, you were hoping to get a glimpse. are you disappointed. >> i am feeling good. i was hoping to see the pope. i came down to manhattan, to new york city, so far i haven't seen him yet but i am still hoping. >> what is it about this moment that makes it so exciting for you? >> this is a great experience, historic. the pope is coming to new york city. he will leave his footprint,

>> without question. >> people are thrilled about this. we have people over here. why are you here? to see the pope? >> yes. i don't speak english very well. >> reporter: that's what you see when you walk up to tourists in new york in random. that is what makes the city great of course. let's talk to some other people here. we are hoping to see the pope. all right. i understand it we will wrap to another venue. that's the scene at 49th and sixth avenue. a lot of excitement two blocks away. the excitement is building. back to you. >> two things interesting. one a trash truck, a garbage truck and then a tourist bus. >> moving along. >> you are not going to see the pope on sixth avenue. we want to go to joe torres at st. patrick's looking at the preparation for the prayer service this evening when the pope arrives. joe?

>> reporter: bill and liz, let's show you who arrived on the scene here. zoom in across the street. you will see governor cuomo, mayor de blasio, senator schumer. we have seen the excitement in washington and soaking up the experience in new york as philadelphia prepares for the pope but since his reelection in 2013 the world watched as pope francis carried himself. he set aside the perks of his provisions. he has a whole hearted focus on the poor. many catholics say they love he gets the sense that he is not preaching from above you but talking at long side you and the result is so many have renewed their commitment to their faith. people that saw their faith flounder are returning to the church. for many, that is what they consider the francis effect. when you look at what pope francis says you will see what the american bishops are

getting a lot of attention, moving the needle. when the pope comes it moves the needle. the francis effect is a double effect. the first affect is, wow. the second effect is when it starts to bother your conscious. i live -- god has treated me well. >> reporter: moving the needle. that the pope does. there are some that hopes he resets the needle on immigration, homeless and climate change. we are waiting the pope's arrival. when it happens, we will send it back to you. >> card knoll dolan will be one of the ones that receive the pope as he arrives there. >> yes, he will. the excitement is building here. word is coming through that the pope is about to get in his popemobile up 5th avenue. one thing, things are changing, when security is becoming tighter.

there are 5,000 police officers -- actually 6,000 police officers dedicated to this event. they are moving in. you see more secret service in the area. this is an exiting moment. behind me you can see senator chuck schumer, governor cuomo is there, mayor de blasio is there and they were talking about what this means to the city, what it means to them. governor cuomo was telling me i used to be an altar boy. to see the pope here in person means so much. he said this is one of the perk's of being who he is and being able to meet the pope. a memorable moment. senator chuck schumer met the pope twice yesterday in washington, d.c. so, this is something that is very special to them and they say this is certainly and event that is special to the city. again, the pope will arrive at saint patrick's cathedral where he will have an evening prayer service. there are about 3500 people

that will be here. a thousand will be priests. it's an exciting moment. the excitement is building. bill and liz, back to you. >> all right, sade. thank you. we want to go to where the pope is staying. 72nd, very high price real estate. >> beautiful area. >> diplomatic residence on 72nd street and park street between 5th avenue and madison. >> yes. the papal nuncio is where he will be staying. had sprucing up. >> why not. >> new wiring but nothing over the top. >> reporter: let me have you take a look at this crowd. nothing like midtown. the nypd is out here and good about moving the crowd along. there are some people out here waiting for hours. that size of crowd you are seeing in midtown, you are not seeing that here. when it comes down to getting around on the upper east side, until the pope is physically

streets will look like this, closed off to traffic east and westbound. traffic is flowing up and downtown. across town with all the barricades, that is when it gets tricky. residents say this is a minor inconvenience. until the pope is physically here, this is how it will look like. with all the heavily armored nypd vehicles and countless officers and secret service agents, with all that, residents don't mind. we did have sound from residents that are pretty excited about all of this. we talked to a lot of folks out here. not a single one is frustrated. they understand it's new yorkers, they are used to it, u.n. week. here is when it may not be easy to get around. tonight when the pope is in the building or when he is coming in and out it will be a frozen zone.

have to show id and be escorted home showing an id. that is the latest from the upper east side, stefan kim, channel 7 eyewitness news. >> thank you very much. we want to return to another location right near where the pope is going to go, two blocks away from saint patrick's. n.j. burkett is there with people trying to get a glimpse. the odds are fairly slim, right, nj. >> we are one block down, one block over from st. patrick's. so close yet so far. you can see people are doing anything they can to try to get in the security zone. that is not happening. they are hoping against hope they will get a glimpse of the pope. they know he is a man of the people, perhaps they will get a glimpse and meet him. it's new york so you never know what can happen. you can see who we got out here.

people that came from all over to see the pope. viva pappa. you can see the excitement is building. he is not even at the cathedral. he is making his way through manhattan to get up here. the excitement is building. people are thrilled to be here. live in midtown, n.j. burkett, channel 7 eyewitness news. >> before we let you go, you were on the outside of the area locked down. traffic surprisingly seems busy but moving? >> reporter: yeah, you know, i am amazed. i have to tell you i am amazed how it is moving. we will have the photographer give you a look on 6th avenue. we can't go out in the street but there are buses moving. just looking at this, i could walk faster than the buses are moving, fair enough but, yes, now we look up the street, pete, up this way, north on

i wouldn't want to be in the traffic, liz, but, yes, it's not complete abject total gridlock. bottom line, if you try to get anywhere in new york city right now, your best bet is the subway. we have been saying that the last several days. amazing that they are running all of the subways. they added mass transit on long island railroad, extra trounce getting people in and out of the city tomorrow. your best bet if you have to get around the city is to stay underground. liz, back to you. >> looks like a regular commuting situation. it could can be the gridlock effect. you say it enough times, people stay away, i will telecommute from home and make that decision. tomorrow is a friday, a lot of people will do that as well. >> n.j. burkett is there with those that don't have tickets.

she is with folks that have tickets. >> on her iphone. >> reporter: we were lucky enough to get tickets and get in here. sir, do you know if he is coming soon. >> i was told he is by the apple store. >> he is by the apple store. i don't think he is buying anything, though. we are so excited with all these folks. they are waiting and waiting for hours. they say they wouldn't miss this for the world. we will be sure to get it as it comes by. we are on an iphone like everyone else so pardon our signal. but these folks are very, very excited. they greeted the mayor, senator schumer, governor cuomo. you can see security hopefully fanning through here it is about to hatch. here you see all these folks trying to get a glimpse. we are hoping you are sticking with this. people came from across the country, across the world to see this. people visiting new york,

getting tickets in here. >> stacey unless you grow about 8 inches, we will keep talking to you but it looks like you froze in your picture so we can't tell what everyone else was seeing -- there we go. >> point the camera to the street, stacey so we can see when the car goes by. >> absolutely. kevin, come on up. bring the camera up slowly. ment if we don't freeze up, hopefully you can see it. security just swept through. you can see thousands and thousands of people lining 5th avenue. we have been here for hours. we saw it go from a smaller crowd to the crowd that is swelling at this point. we are on 5th between 52nd and 51st street right now. we talked to people young today, people who were 89 years old and they all share a common desire to see pope francis. they all want to see unified humanity in new york city today. and they say that, you know,

we talked to a lot of people that couldn't get in. it's special to get beyond that gate. to have that piece of paper. >> apparently so. keep your camera there. we did see what appeared to be a little bit of a motorcade making its way up. you saw immediately everyone's arms with their cameras and iphones went up hoping that, perhaps, it could have been the pope. one of the biggest concerns obviously is when the pope is in the popemobile, he is known to be unpredictable. that caused such great answer for the -- angst for the nypd. they don't know if the pope at some point during the trip up 5th avenue will stop and get out and perhaps see any of the folks ticketed and waiting for hours to greet the pope. >> stacey, kevin is a strong guy. >> absolutely. absolutely. >> we want to have him turn to

the right behind your shoulder so we can see. we can hear, i suspect, the crowd before we see the popemobile. the crowd will go a little crazy. but we do see a flashing light. we will see it when -- the popemobile will be going slowly for these few blocks because he wants to see people. stacey, nj said it, he is known to be unpredictable. father malone as you watch this, what are you thinking? >> this is precisely the moment when his spontaneity comes out. as moved as people are to see him, he is moved to see people and it affects them. he has this great interior freedom and lives in the moment. he could be affected by these faces and make a spontaneous gesture. this popemobile is different, a different popemobile than the one benedict had. >> the jeep.

i think it was a mercedes. >> his was custom made. >> reporter: this is a jeep but open on the sides precisely because he is an ex trough vert and wants to be able to touch people. >> didn't want to be in a sardine can. >> stacey, keep kevin's camera there. jim dolan is one block away from you on 6th avenue. make that 7th avenue. did you see -- did the people get a chance to hear anything at least. >> well, no, they are hoping to see something. folks came from all over. these folks are from albany, new jersey, brooklyn and they don't have tickets. we are on the opposite side of that fence that you guys are talking about. that is 5th avenue in that direction. they are all strange here because from here you won't be able to see -- no audio.

>> jim is frozen. we are back with stacey's camera. >> it's an iphone. >> you can see some arms are back up. everyone is looking in the same direction so, perhaps, he might be getting closer. >> if kevin -- does something we don't see through his lens? >> we apologize for some of the problems we are dealing with. we can't have our own cameras in the frozen zone so stacey sager and her crew are using an iphone which is what we are relying on, which you are looking at right now. >> i did see something before the picture froze -- it goes in and out. i saw flashing lights if you look next to that scaffolding there is a flashing light right there and i suspect at least secret service or police car ahead of the popemobile. i suspect we are getting close. you can see the lights. >> father malone joining us

onset, we have heard so much from the pope. he points, sensitive political points that he made today. what do you think that we will hear from him now that he is here in new york? >> well, tonight, this advertise a moment of prayer. when he arrives in a place, even when it's not the national capitol, when he arrives at a place, he makes it a point to prayer with the religious and people. this journey from washington to new york is a pivot from his role as head of state and international figure to the spiritual leader of nearly 1 1/2 billion catholics. so, whatever he says this evening, i think it will be more pastoral and he will stress the same things he stressed throughout. mercy, mercy, mercy. those are the three things of

this pontificate. >> we will have you wh vespers are ongoing p. you are a jesuit. you take a vow of poverty. 99% of the people in that audience in st. pat's don't take that vow. will that be an issue. will the pope try to address that. >> no, because the pope doesn't judge people before he meets them. he will say something that of a firms and challenges. that's the role of a pastor. accompany people and affirm how god is already at work in their lives, the good work they are doing but also to challenge and to say, because, the gospel is a per pet to al challenge. it's constant -- perpetual challenge. it's constantly calling forth response to god. an affirmation and challenge. those are the twin pillars of

what he refers to as a dialogue. they referred to that 12 times in congress. >> has he ruffled feathers because he has taken a vow of poverty and some others have not. >> sure he has. it's always important to remember that religion, like jesuits, dominicans, franciscans, we take vows of poverty. di oso san priests, the vast majority don't take a vow of poverty. common misunderstanding. he has rough felled feathers because he thinks that the application of the gospel in the world today is an occasion for feather ruffling. it makes serious demands on us as a church, as a people and he is comfortable with that. so -- but he doesn't do these things to rub our face in it. >> that's the popemobile.

except for the front it is open. obviously he is not in that. there was talk that he had gone past the apple store but that's a long trip. he is going slowly. certainly enough flashing lights over there on 5th avenue as you look north on 5th avenue that clearly that is in some sort of motorcade. >> niche nor bratton -- i think that is him. >> what is interesting about this 5th avenue, as they travel south shut down on the right