Spain’s King Juan Carlos kisses the hand of Pope John Paul II during a ceremony attended by hundreds of thousands of people in Madrid’s central Plaza de Colon square 04 May 2003. Photo AFP

(FILES) Spain’s King Juan Carlos kisses the hand of Pope John Paul II during a ceremony attended by hundreds of thousands of people in Madrid’s central Plaza de Colon square 04 May 2003 on the second day of the Pope’s visit to Madrid. Pope John Paul II is „fully conscious,“ lucid and „extremely serene,“ after suffering a heart attack and his condition seriously deteriorated overnight, his spokeman said 01 April 2005. The 84-year-old pontiff’s overall condition was „stable,“ Joaquin Navarro-Valls told a news conference, adding that John Paul II had received his closest advisers in separate meetings at his bedside on Friday morning. This is the first-ever papal visit to Cuba. AFP PHOTO FILES POOL ALBERTO MARTIN