He’s waking up in town that never sleeps — and consumes so much of oysters.
Prince William, 41, touched down in Recent York City on Monday for a solo visit — abandoning his wife, Kate Middleton, 41 — and declared that it was “so good to be back in the USA.”
Then he got his feet wet — literally — during a visit to Governor’s Island.
Arriving there straight from Newark Airport, the Prince of Wales donned waders, a neon orange life vest and a pair of vibrant yellow gloves to satisfy with the Billion Oyster Project (BOP), a nonprofit working to assist restore oyster reefs to Recent York Harbor.
The project cures oyster shells for a 12 months, collecting them, partly, from dozens of restaurants like popular NYC spots Crave Fishbar and Grand Banks. They’re put through an extended process to revive oyster reefs that help protect town from storm surges, amongst other advantages.
During his visit, his first stateside trip since 2014, Prince William lifted a number of handfuls of oysters from their cages and spoke to shocked students from the Recent York Harbor School MAST Center’s oyster hatchery, whose meeting with the royal was kept under wraps until Monday morning.
The prince also met with 4 restaurateurs, including Crave Fishbar owner Brian Owens, who has donated 3 million oyster shells since 2015 — and was bowled over by how interested Prince William seemed.
“I used to be surprised at how engaging he was and what number of questions he had, and I feel he had some good questions,” Owens said.
Ben LoGuidice, who works in distant setting management, echoed that the prince was “very interested” in the method.
In remarks, Prince William proclaimed that “nobody does optimism and ingenuity just like the American people,” and he further embraced the American spirit by referencing former President John F. Kennedy.
“I do know our generation can take the daring motion we’d like to make changes towards a healthy and sustainable world,” the prince said. “The challenge may feel huge, but as John F. Kennedy taught us, we rise to the challenge not since it is simple, but since it is difficult. And vital.”
On Tuesday, the prince — whose visit takes place in the course of the UN General Assembly week — is about to satisfy with a gaggle of first responders to talk about mental health. He was also planning to attend the Earthshot Prize Annual Innovation Summit.
Nonetheless, one topic of conversation won’t be broached while he’s stateside, in line with the Sunday Times: his rocky relationship together with his brother, Prince Harry, 39,
Despite the fact that he’ll only be a number of hours from California-living Harry and his 42-year-old wife, Meghan Markle, William doesn’t plan to field questions on their apparent estrangement during any media interviews, the outlet reported.
