Prince Harry in New York

HRH Prince Henry of Wales arrived in New York City on Friday, in his first ever official visit to the United States. The third in line to the British throne is in the Big Apple to raise money for his charity, Sentebale, and pay his respects to those who died in the 9/11 terror attacks.

Stopping by Ground Zero, he met with relatives of those who were killed that day. Harry then laid wreath on the fence that surrounds the deep hole where the World Trade Center once stood. He left a handwritten note tacked to the wreath, citing an “admiration of the courage shown by the people.”

Later on, Prince Harry moved to Hanover Square, to the renamed British Garden, to plant a magnolia bush in memory of the 67 Britons who died on 9/11.

Next, Harry went to the Veteran’s Medical Center to tour its prosthetics lab and meet some veterans. Prince Harry himself is a veteran in a sense. He fought for 10 weeks in Afghanistan in early 2008.

The next day the Prince toured Harlem's Children Zone, a community organization that offers families social and educational services, together with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho. They chatted with students working preparing for a Regents Exam.

After that, he took part in one of his favorite activities - playing polo on Governor’s Island. On a brilliantly sunny day in New York Harbor, the Prince drew a crowd that included stars like Madonna, actresses Kate Hudson and Chloe Sevigny, and rapper LL Cool J, but also lots of ordinary New Yorkers out for a rare sight: a polo game in the city. The event will raise money for Harry’s Sentebale charity which helps children in the Lesotho, a small kingdom in southern Africa.

"Prince Seeiso and I both lost our mothers when we were very young," Harry said in brief remarks before the match. "We set up Sentebale in their memory, and because my mother loved this city, it makes this occasion all the more poignant for me."