El puente del Papa (The Pope's Bridge) is a bridge located in Monterrey, Mexico across the usually dry Río Santa Catarina. It took its name when Pope John Paul II offered a Catholic mass over the bridge. The current Pope is Benedict XVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger), who was elected at the age of 78 on 19 April 2005. ... Monterrey is the capital city of the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León and the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. ... Pope John Paul II (Latin: ), born Karol Józef WojtyÅ‚a [1] (May 18, 1920 – April 2, 2005) reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church from October 16, 1978 until his death, more than 26 years, making his the second-longest pontificate in modern times after Pius IXs...

A flea market which is installed under the bridge on weekends has the same name.

Before the Pope John Paul II visted Monterrey, the bridge was called "Puente San Luisito" (St. Little Louis' Bridge), as it connected the "San Luisito" neighbourhood, (today, Independencia neighbourhood) with Monterrey Downtown, across the Santa Catarina River. The name of "Puente San Luisito" was the name of the bridge for over a century, and in just 20 years, it has been completely forgotten. Pope John Paul II (Latin: ), born Karol Józef Wojtyła [1] (May 18, 1920 – April 2, 2005) reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church from October 16, 1978 until his death, more than 26 years, making his the second-longest pontificate in modern times after Pius IXs...