Francis never used the papal summer residence.

A small Bavarian flag, with its white and blue diamonds, still sits on the desk. There, too, is the "Lexicon for Theology and Church" in German, ten volumes including an index and a supplementary volume. As if the German Pope Benedict XVI, who died on New Year's Eve 2022, could still come into the office at any time in the Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo. Not much is happening here.

But after twelve years of both summer and winter hibernation, the tranquility is finally over in the small town of 9,000 inhabitants southeast of Rome. Today, another pope returns to Castel Gandolfo: The new Pontiff Leo XIV, two months in office, is moving into his summer residence – as almost all heads of the Catholic Church have done for four centuries.

Only one person didn't: his immediate predecessor, Francis. The Argentinian always spent the summer in the Vatican, in his apartment in the Santa Marta guesthouse – just as he never went on vacation as Archbishop of Buenos Aires. "That's not my style," he once said. "I prefer to rest at home." Besides, for the man from humble beginnings, this was a natural part of his modesty.

In terms of his program, Francis's successor has so far followed his predecessor's lead. However, not in outward appearances: With his vacation in Castel Gandolfo, the first pope from the United States is reviving another tradition that the Argentinian had broken with: wearing vestments more often, including the golden pectoral cross, driving larger cars, and planning to move back into the papal apartments in the Vatican. However, the rooms still need to be renovated after being vacant for so long.

And now to Castel Gandolfo, in the mountains above Lake Albano, a half-hour drive from Rome. The air in this summer resort is more bearable than in the capital, where temperatures have been hovering around 40 degrees Celsius for weeks. The Papal Palace in the province has belonged to the Vatican since 1596. Two more villas were added later. The site is even ten hectares larger than Vatican City.

The first pontiff to take a retreat here in July and August was Urban VIII (1623-1644). Since then, the palace has been a popular destination for popes. John Paul II of Poland (1978-2005) even had a swimming pool built – and promptly made headlines when paparazzi caught him in his swimming trunks. Benedict even retreated to Castel Gandolfo for a while after his surprise resignation.

One of the few photos of Francis that exist from that time dates from this time: The old and new popes held a kind of handover of power in the palace in 2013. Benedict spent the last years of his life in Vatican City. Francis had the palace declared a museum in 2016. Now tourists are also allowed inside.

However, since Castel Gandolfo ceased to be the center of Catholic activity in the summer, hardly any visitors have made their way there. Hoteliers, restaurateurs, and souvenir sellers are now hoping for better business. However, things aren't really going well: There's no sign anywhere in the palace that there's a new pontiff. Francis is still alive in the papal family tree. And souvenir sellers are complaining bitterly that there are still no postcards featuring Leo.

According to a report in the "Corriere della Sera," the new pope has already had a tennis court built: the 69-year-old still plays. In addition to the swimming pool, there's also a bocce court. Leo will, of course, not be staying in the museum, but in the Villa Barberini, an annex in the city center. He already dropped by unannounced on Thursday.

Apparently, Leo really does want to take it easy over the next two weeks. He canceled all his audiences. During his first two months in office, the new head of 1.4 billion Catholics had made many appointments to attend to internal matters: There was some discontent with Francis within the Curia, the Church's power structure. So far, he has refrained from traveling abroad. He has also given only a single, meaningless interview.

Leo does have a few appointments over the next two weeks, however. He plans to recite the Sunday Angelus prayer, which normally draws tens of thousands of people to St. Peter's Square, next week in Castel Gandolfo. On July 20, he'll return to Rome for a while. However, he'll spend the Assumption weekend on August 15, the peak of the holiday season in Italy, back at his summer residence. He also plans to celebrate Mass in the parish church.

One decision is still pending: whether the Apostolic Palace in Castel Gandolfo will remain open for visits. The director of the Papal Villas, Andrea Tamburelli, says: "The decision about its future lies with the Pope." Many in the small town expect that Leo will use the palace as his residence starting next summer, like most of his predecessors. The Bavarian flag on his desk would then be removed.