America bids farewell to Jimmy Carter, flags at half-mast: 'A man who didn't walk around proudly'

plains - Crowds gathered along the road to bid farewell to former President Jimmy Carter as his funeral procession passed by.

Crowds gathered along the road to bid farewell to former President Jimmy Carter as his funeral procession passed by. Many waved small American flags, took photos, or saluted as the procession went on. The black hearse stopped at Carter's childhood peanut farm, where a bell was rung 39 times in honor of the 39th American president. National Park Service staff, who manage the farm, held a simple and quiet tribute.

"He was a man who didn't walk around proudly, he was an ordinary, normal person," 71-year-old William Brown told an AFP reporter while waiting for the car convoy in Plains. "We will miss him."

The funeral procession then headed to Atlanta for a brief stop and a moment of silence at Georgia's legislature where Carter had served as a senator before becoming the state's governor. His body was then transferred to the Carter Presidential Center where mourners can pay their respects until 6:00 a.m. local time on Tuesday.

"We will spend this week celebrating this incredible life, a life that I think we all agree is as full and powerful as a life can be. As someone said, it is amazing what you can pack into a hundred years," Carter's grandson Jason said during the ceremony at the Carter Center.

The United States will observe a national day of mourning on January 9. Carter will then receive a state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral. As president, he brokered peace between Israel and Egypt. After his presidency, he focused on humanitarian work and mediated in several long-standing conflicts. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.