In this photo provided by the Vatican paper L'Osservatore Romano, Pope Francis greets faithful from a side gate of the Vatican, Sunday, March 17, 2013. Pope Francis began his first Sunday as pontiff by making an impromptu appearance to the public from a side gate of the Vatican, startling passersby and prompting cheers, then kept up his simple, spontaneous style by delivering a brief, off-the-cuff homily at the Vatican's tiny parish church. Dressed only in white cassock, Francis waved to the crowd in the street outside St. Anna's Gate and before entering the church, which serves Vatican City State's hundreds of residents, he shook hands of the parishioners and kissed babies. But Francis did tweet in English and other languages, saying: "Dear friends, I thank you from my heart and I ask you to continue to pray for me. " Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi said it was likely Francis, at least for the moment, given the off-the-cuff style, was sticking with Italian, a language he's comfortable with. Lombardi left open the possibility that other languages would be used in the appearances with the public in the future. The crowd was cheering wildly when the white curtain at the window of his apartment was parted, and Francis appeared, but fell into rapt silence when he began to speak. Some people's eyes welled up. Many people waving the blue-and-white flags of Argentine, the homeland of the world's first Latin American pope. Some people help their children aloft or on their shoulders to get a better look. Said Ivana Cabello, 23, from Argentina: "We are so proud. He is Argentine, but also belongs to the rest of the world. Angela Carreon, a 41-year-old Rome resident originally from the Philippines, estimated the crowd was twice as big as for Benedict's last appearance on Feb. 28. I think he looks like John Paul II. I hope he is like him," she said. He has a heart. Edgardo Chapur, 42, an Argentine in Rome for first time, said it was very "emotional" to come to St. Peter's Square to listen to Francis. It's fantastic for us. I think it can change a lot of things in Argentina. It gives us hope," he said. It has given us new strength. Associated Press writers Daniela Petroff and Karl Ritter contributed to this report.