Since dawn yesterday, a long line has formed in front of the Holy Door of the basilica of St. Mary Major, where Pope Francis is buried. Opening the entrance wide at 7 a.m. was Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas, rector of the basilica, who was greeted by a moved and devout crowd. By 2 p.m. there were already 30,000 faithful who had entered to pay homage to the Pontiff, a figure expected to double by evening. Among them were families, religious, scouts, people who had arrived from all over the world, along with the inhabitants of the Esquiline neighborhood, proud to have as a "neighbor" the Pope who chose to rest in an area symbolic of multiculturalism. In the afternoon, a hundred cardinals joined the long procession to recite Vespers. The queues lasted up to two hours, and in front of the tomb - as simple as he was - they paused for only a few seconds. The long line continued until 10 p.m. and resumed this morning. The City of Rome is working on a plan to handle the growing influx in the coming weeks.