Some have tried to hide their rank as they walk toward St. Peter’s Basilica, wearing simple priestly suits and keeping their heads down.

Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, a widely recognized papabile, attempted this discreet approach. After waving off a small group of journalists shoving cameras and microphones in his face, Zuppi walked past the tourists exiting the basilica, stopping only to thank passersby when recognized and praised.

Videos of Zuppi have popped up online. They show the cardinal patiently acknowledging questions and joking with paparazzi about getting his hair cut in a way his mother would have liked before the conclave.

Others, such as Cardinal Isao Kikuchi of the Archdiocese of Tokyo, strolled through wearing scarlet-piped cassocks and matching zucchetto skullcaps, not trying to blend in.

Reporters flocked and tourists gawked at the Japanese prelate as he walked down Via Paolo VI just outside the Vatican’s borders.

The scrum of cameras, video equipment, and iPhones shoved into Kikuchi’s face was so aggressive that he was forced to stop and answer a question before attempting to walk again. With each comment, he was given just a few more feet to step as he tried to make his way toward the Swiss Guard-protected side entrance to the Vatican.

Like Zuppi, Kikuchi did his best to dodge hardball questions about court politics, joking and making observations such as the electors’ lack of familiarity with one another.

Some reporters waited outside buildings they thought specific churchmen were inside, such as the Paul VI Audience Hall or the Synod Hall. When one emerged, they pounced.

This period is mostly an exercise in futility for Catholic leaders. Holding a position in the nearly 2,000-year-old College of Cardinals comes with an expectation of prudence and reservation.

In the digital age, most cardinals offer messages to the public during the pre-conclave period online.

“I plead for the church at the time of great trial and danger for her,” Cardinal Raymond Burke, an American prelate, said in a video posted to social media last week, appealing to Our Lady of Guadalupe for intercession.

“Please intercede for the sacred college of Cardinals gathered in Rome to elect the successor of St. Peter, Vicar of Christ, shepherd for the universal church,” he said in the video. “At this tumultuous time for the church and for the world, plead with your divine Son that the cardinals of the Holy Roman Church’s mystical body will humbly obey the prompting of the Holy Spirit.”

A three-story scaffolding for television crews was erected outside the Sala Stampa, the Holy See’s press office, providing a direct line of sight to the basilica. It’s a base of operations for many news networks.

From there, they will shoot the procession of cardinals walking to the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday to be sealed inside for the election. They will only be allowed to leave when two-thirds have voted for the next pontiff.

Other reporters have used selfie-sticks, tripods, and cellphones to video themselves reporting from the Catholic Church’s most powerful see.

However, journalists are not the only people harassing the churchmen. Tourists have been walking right up to the prelates and snapping photos without asking, smiling with satisfaction despite the cardinals’ apparent frustration.

Vatican City is in full-blown conclave fever.

One local restaurant is passing out flyers for “conclave meals” of seasonal dishes, which can be delivered to people sitting in St. Peter’s Square waiting for the smoke from the Sistine Chapel.

The Vatican Post Office is currently offering postage stamps without a pope on them. They are instead decorated with the umbrella and key insignia that represent the period of sede vacante, Latin for the chair of St. Peter being empty.

The conclave is set to begin on Wednesday morning. To reach the two-thirds majority threshold, the election must last as long as necessary. A candidate must receive 89 votes.

Every papal election has been completed in under a week for almost the last two centuries. However, the geographic diversity of the College of Cardinals under the late Pope Francis means that this is the first time many members are meeting one another.

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This could draw out the election, as strategic blocs in past conclaves might not be as solid or well-formed.

The Vatican Press Office announced today that Camerlengo Kevin Farrell drew lots on Saturday to determine the apartments his fellow cardinals will occupy during the conclave proceedings.