from earlier, an e-mail:

It’s 5:30 am.
The police have blocked off Via della Conciliazione (the long avenue in front of St. Peter’s Basilica).
Thousands of police officers are manning barricades. Behind the barricades are tens of thousands (at least) of singing, chanting, flag waving people. Mostly Poles and Spaniards, by the flags.
I had struggle to get into my office, which is at the end of Via della Conciliazione. There are scores of people asleep in front of the doorway.
Across the Tiber, you can see large groups of people making their way to the Vatican.
The City of Rome is trying to get people to go to alternative venues, where the ceremony will be broadcast. No one seems to be taking them up on the offer yet.
What is unusual, considering the mood earlier in the week, is the joy in the crowd.
Most of these people are under 30. When the Pope died, it seemed like they didn’t know what to do. Like today, there was singing and chanting, but also many tears.
By Wednesday, it was as if a decision was made that the mourning period was over. Right now, it is exactly like a World Youth Day, down to the commemorative t-shirts and hats. I haven’t seen anyone cry since Tuesday.