A small crowd of sightseers and tearful pilgrims filed past Pope John Paul II's tomb early Wednesday after the Vatican opened the site to the public for the first time since the Pontiff's funeral. A few hundred people were waiting in line when the Vatican unlocked the Grottoes under St. Peter's Basilica at 7 a.m. Roman Catholic cardinals have viewed the tomb, which is covered with a white marble slab inscribed with the Pope's name and the dates of his papacy. They are calling for procedures to make the late pontiff a saint to be accelerated, the Italian media reports. The cardinals will meet next week to choose a new Pope.

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