Cardinals check in for secret vote

Cardinals enjoyed the few last hours today to confer with aides or pray with faithful before they were required to check-in at a top-security hotel in Vatican City, where they will be sequestered in secret sessions in the Sistine Chapel to elect the next pope.

Many Vatican observers expect the conclave to last two or three days after the start of voting either tomorrow afternoon or Tuesday morning. But the ritual-filled election process to choose Pope John Paul II’s successor could last many more days.