Mccanns visit holiest site in Portugal to pray for Miracle

The parents of missing Madeleine McCann are to make a pilgrimage to the holiest site in Portugal to pray for a miracle: the safe return of their daughter.They will visit the town of Fatima, home to a shrine that is visited by millions of Catholic pilgrims every year.The trip may well prove to be the first step in an expected European tour aimed at spreading news of Madeleine's abduction across the continent.And it will be the first time since Madeleine's mother Kate McCann has left Praia da Luz since her daughter was snatched from the resort on May 3.Friends said Mrs McCann had considered making the four-hour trip even before Madeleine was abducted and has been set on making the journey ever since.The Sanctuary of Fatima was built to commemorate the events of 1917 when three peasant children claimed to have seen the Virgin Mary.Just 10 days ago, on the weekend of Madeleine's birthday, around 300,000 pilgrims flocked to Fatima to mark the 90th anniversary of one of the visions.Many were holding up pictures of Madeleine and praying for her safe return.Kate and Gerry McCann have said they will do what it takes to keep their daughter's image in the media spotlight, in the hope she will be returned."We will travel wherever is necessary to ensure people across Europe recognise Madeleine's picture and encourage them to come forward with information," Mr McCann said."We are going to monitor the media exposure throughout Europe and then we will decide along with our campaign manager and press team where we need to go to make maximum impact."