Francis starts as he means to go on — by bus

Pope Francis spent his first day as the leader of 1.2bn Catholics praying, paying his hotel bill, and catching the bus.

Much has been made of the 76-year-old’s humility and modesty, previously winning praise for eschewing the trappings of office for a frugal life in Buenos Aires, where he was archbishop.

The break from his predecessor Benedict XVI’s pontificate was evident even in Francis’s wardrobe choices — he kept the simple iron pectoral cross of his days as bishop and eschewed the red cape that Benedict wore when he was presented to the world for the first time in 2005 — choosing instead the simple white cassock of the papacy.