VATICAN CITY - For a brief, heartstopping moment, the 20,000 pilgrims in Saint Peter's Square gasped, cheered and surged forward toward the basilica Monday, believing they had seen the white smoke announcing a new pope.
But the enthusiasm soon turned into disappointment, when heavy black fumes -- the signal that cardinals failed to agree on a name -- spewed out of the chimney specially installed on the Sistine Chapel for the top-secret conclave.
"It's white, it's white!" screamed Pam Kondor from Orlando, Florida, trying to contain her excitement to snap a picture of the little stream of light gray smoke filtering out.
"It happened so suddenly, I didn't realize what was going on," said Zsuzsanna Horvath, a Hungarian student living in Rome.
But the light gray soon turned black.
"It would have been so nice," said Kondor's daughter, Melissa. "But we'll be back tomorrow."
They were not the only ones determined to return for the next round of voting by the 115 Roman Catholic cardinals tasked with choosing a successor to John Paul II.
Frederic Koukimouka of the Republic of Congo arranged to meet his friends at midday Tuesday, when the next vote -- and smoke -- is expected.
Koukimouka was not disappointed by Monday's result, saying it would have been too early for the cardinals to choose a new pope.
"You need to have time to discuss," said Koukimouka. "It is the life of the Church and the world which is at stake."
Many were happy to simply have seen smoke, whatever the color.
"It's an unforgettable moment," said Nino Trifaro, a 70-year-old Roman pensioner.
"We felt everyone's wish to have a pope immediately. They exulted, it was so beautiful," said Benedetta Gianfortuna of the Sicilian city of Palermo who has taken three days off to be in Rome for the conclave.
Some had waited for hours, peering up at the thin copper chimney, to see the result of the first papal ballot of the third millennium.
"This is one of the few times in life when you know that something will happen in the next few days that will change the entire world," said Samer Naoum, an Iraqi Chaldean Christian who lives in San Diego, California.
"We're here till the white smoke comes out," said Naoum, his rosary hanging from his neck, more than three hours before Monday's smoke.
The eyes and lenses once turned to the windows of the papal apartment from which the late pope John Paul II would bless the crowd during his 26-year pontificate were all focused on the chimney, barely noticeable to the right of the basilica.
John Paul II died April 2 aged 84, and the race for his succession is still wide open, Vatican experts say.
On the square, some did not hide their preference.
"We're all Ratzinger people here," said Nicholas Lebish, looking at a big screen set up on the square as German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, a leading candidate, presided over the procession formally starting the conclave.
"He can and will walk the walk. It's easy to talk the talk, but he can walk it," said his friend, Shiney Simon, an Indian Catholic now living in Chicago.
But many Italians said they hoped to see the papacy return to Italy. Polish-born John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope in more than 400 years.
"I want an Italian one," said Giuseppina Gualdaroni, a small 82-year-old Roman woman. "Because we understand each other better."
On Monday morning, thousands invoked the Holy Spirit to guide the cardinals in a special mass held in the basilica.
"We know we have to invoke the Holy Spirit so the cardinals can be docile and choose the one that God wants," said Sister Maria Anima Christi from the Netherlands.
Whoever is chosen will have trouble filling the shoes of John Paul II, said Father John Loboka, a priest from southern Sudan.
"He has set a standard that is very high and the world will be looking (to see) that this standard is reached or superceded," said the priest, who is studying in Rome.

04/18/2005 20:10 GMT