JOIN US"Big question, when is this supposed to be finished?" the 24-year-old prince asked two officials showing him rebuilding plans of the World Trade Center site.
The prince laid a wreath of peonies, yellow and white roses at a spot on the site overlooking the Sept 11 memorial under construction, then bowed his head for several minutes.
Attached to the wreath was his handwritten note, reading "In respectful memory of those who lost their lives on Sept 11, 2001, and in admiration of the courage shown by the people of this great city on that day." It was signed, "Harry."
Harry spoke for about 15 minutes with relatives of four 9/11 victims in his first New York City stop. He was to visit a garden memorializing British victims of the Sept 11 attack and a veterans center in Manhattan later today.
"It's a very kind gesture on his part," said Chip Callori, whose brother, Joseph Amatuccio, was killed at the Trade Center on Sept 11, 2001.
"For him to realize that this is a sad but important part of our history."
The prince then visited a firehouse across from ground zero, while hundreds of New Yorkers strained for a glimpse of him behind police barricades.