Pope Francis to begin first-ever papal mass in Arabian Peninsula

He waved at the crowd as he arrived aboard the popemobile.

Pope Francis has arrived and the tens of thousands of people gathered at the Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi early Tuesday morning are up on their feet chanting "Pope Francis" and "Viva El Papa" as the head of the Catholic Church wave at them aboard the popemobile. 
The weather is cool and sunny with the temperature hovering around 22 degrees Centigrade. The mood is electrifying and everyone is up and about despite having only an hour or so of sleep as around 135,000 people of all ages from all over the UAE and neighbouring countries trooped to the UAE capital for the first-ever papal Mass in the Arabian Peninsula. 
Sheikh Nahyan Mabarak Al Nahyan, the UAE Minister of Tolerance, is among the crowd. 
The stadium, with an estimated 40,000-seating capacity opened its doors before 5AM. Entry to the stadium is orderly, made possible by the hundreds of volunteers who came to the venue the night before. 
Waving of the Vatican flag and chants of chanting "Viva El Papa!" reverberate inside the stadium as people await the coming Pope Francis, who is expected to arrive at the stadium at 10.30am aboard the popemobile, a specially-designed motor vehicle flown in from the Vatican to the UAE for the Pope's historic three-day visit.
Jordanian priest Father Rifat Bader, general director of Catholic Center for Studies and Media based in Amman, told Khaleej Times: "this historic mass is a big encouragement to the Christain faithful not just in the Arabian Peninsula but across the world." 
When asked what he is expecting to hear from the Pope at the Mass, Father Rifat said: "We are all eagerly awaiting to hear his message. He is a Pope full of surprises but I'm sure he will tell the gospel of today and how we, as Christians, can hurdle various challenges. But I'm very happy for this historic moment which happens in a country that respects various religions." 
According to the Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia, there are around 1M Catholics living in the UAE.  
Friends Joel, Wendy, Mariecar who all live in Bur Dubai arrived in Abu Dhabi at 5am. They only slept in the bus during the one-hour plus trip but they said they are full of energy to attend today's papal Mass. 
"We could not contain the joy we feel right now, being here inside the stadium with thousands of faithful. We pray for our respective families and we pray also for the UAE government for this wonderful gift to us," the Filipino expats added. 
Filipino expat Jimmy Ga Monreal, added: "I am very excited I will see the Pope and very blessed that I can serve as a lay minister at the papal Mass. This is a momentous and once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
"I am praying for my complete recovery and healing," added Monreal who has undergone kidney surgery five months ago. 
The papal Mass is also a showcase of peace and tolerance. As Christians hear the Mass, Muslims expats are serving as volunteers. Mohammad, Egyptian, and Omar, Syrian, have been at Zayed Sports City Stadium since 8pm last night. They said they were able to get only a short nap but they're up and about to serve as volunteers for the papal Mass.