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NEW YORK (CBS) ― New Yorkers and the nation pause to remember neighbors, colleagues, friends and family who were lost six years ago today in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.

Six years ago, the world could have never imagined what this day, September 11, would eventually come to mean. That morning two planes were flown into the Twin Towers, changing the city, the nation and the world forever.

Relatives of those lost in the New York City attacks assembled at Zucotti Park in lower Manhattan where this year's ceremony was held, the first time the ceremony was located somewhere other than ground zero because of ongoing construction -- a move that tinged the somber-skyed day with some additional ill feelings from families who opted to skip the ceremony in protest.

A compromise was reached so relatives could at least visit the place so many loved ones died, to honor their memory six years after an attack that changed our nation forever. Still, many were outraged with the decision.

"I think it's another example of [Mayor] Michael Bloomberg's well known intractability," said Michael Burke, who lost his brother, a firefighter, on 9/11.

Bloomberg said in July, "We just couldn't make it safe. Construction is going on over there."

There were still plenty of families, though, who respected Bloomberg's decision and understood the unique circumstance.

"I'm just so happy that I'm going down to my son's final resting place and leave flowers there, and I thank the mayor for using his head and being reasonable with us. That's the way the government is supposed to work," one 9/11 family member said last month.

Aside from the change of venue, it would also be the first time rain fell on the anniversary, as well as the first anniversary to fall on a Tuesday, the same day of the week the attacks happened in 2001.

And perhaps most importantly, it would be the first year that first responders were given the duty of calling out the names of the victims.

The ceremony began minutes before the first plane struck the North Tower. Even six years later, for family and friends gathered here, time does not make things easier.

Moments of silence were held for each tower that was struck and each that fell, followed by the emotional honoring of each victim.

As the names of the 2,750 victims echoed throughout the gray, rainy morning, relatives left Zuccotti Park and descended into the pit to lay flowers at the site, together again in grief. Former mayor and current Republican presidential front-runner Rudy Giuliani touched on the sentiment of pulling together as one.

"On this day six years ago and the days that followed, in the midst of our great grief and turmoil, we also witnessed uncompromising strength and resilience as a people," he said.

But Giuliani was greeted with a smattering of applause after his brief remarks, which followed the third of the traditional four moments of silence: one each for to mark the times when the two planes hit the buildings, and two more for when each tower fell.

"It was a day with no answers, but with an unending line of people who came forward to help one another," said Giuliani, who was in the final weeks of his eight-year run at City Hall.

Among the first family members down the ramp was Marjorie Miller, whose late husband Joel worked at Marsh & McLennan. She said the rain was almost welcome after five consecutive years of September 11 sunshine.

"A lot of tears coming down from up there," she said, gesturing toward the sky, "and a lot of tears down here."

The ceremony began at 8:40 a.m. with the sounds of drums and bagpipes, as an American flag saved from the site was carried onstage. "The Star-Spangled Banner" was performed by the Brooklyn Youth Chorus before the first moment of silence was observed at 8:46 a.m. -- the minute the first plane struck the north tower.

Bloomberg, who has presided over each of the anniversary events, described Sept. 11, 2001, as "the day that tore across our history and our hearts. We come together again as New Yorkers and as Americans to share a loss that can't be measured."

As in years past, people clutched framed photos of their lost loved ones, raising them toward the sky, or held bunches of flowers against their chests.

At the St. Paul's chapel in lower Manhattan -- which served as a sanctuary for first responders and many others in the hours and months after the attack -- the Bell of Hope rang outside the tiny church that stood right across the street from where the towers fell.

Inside, a memorial was also held for the victims. The chapel has become symbolic of the faith that so many embraced and have embraced since the attack. The pews of the chapel have become a refuge for firefighters and other ground zero workers.

Now six years later, the chaplain sees a change:

"We're not using as many kleenex boxes here in the chapel as we used the last year or the year before. The spirit of recovery has come even though we still mourn the loss of those who died," said Rev. Stuart Hoke.

At the memorial altar created by those searching for loved ones never found, some visitors were too moved to speak. One woman was too overcome by grief, telling CBS 2 she simply couldn't find the words.

For Steve Engel, a survivor from the south tower, each year he stops by St. Paul's on this day to remember his friends who died. And yes, he says, it does get easier:

"It comes and goes. Today I am a little emotional. Moving on doesn't mean you forget. And I am not going to forget," he said.

Families on the Long Island shore also gathered this morning to remember and reflect.

"It is a time to remember and it is a show of support to the rest of the country and to each other that we will get through this," said Merrick resident Catherine Clifford.

For a time, on the beaches of Point Lookout, the skies opened up, echoing a tearful tribute to nearly 500 local lives lost. Each year grieving families gather here and other Long Island shores across from the city, where mothers and fathers, daughters and sons never came home.

CBS 2 encountered many relatives who flew in from different parts of the country, and even from as far away as Poland.

In fact, all weekend mourners came together on Long Island to Eisenhower Park and other places of comfort, responding to some messages that "just get over it" are inappropriate and insensitive.

"You can see by the number of folks who do come that it really does provide solace for our families and so as long as our families want the ceremonies to go on, we will be here," said Hempstead Town Supervisor Kate Murray.

Other Sept. 11 commemorations were held around the country, including a moment of silence by President Bush at the White House. Bush was joined by his wife, the vice president, Cabinet members and White House workers as they somberly marked the anniversary.

A memorial honoring the 40 passengers and crew who died when United Airlines Flight 93 crashed in a Pennsylvania field was also held.

"As American citizens we're all looking at our heroes," said Kay Roy, whose sister Colleen Fraser, died in the crash over Pennsylvania. "These are our heroes and I'm glad that one of my family members happens to be one of these heroes."

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff made an unannounced visit to the 30-minute ceremony honoring the victims of Flight 93.

Chertoff echoed Gov. Ed Rendell's comments that the passengers and crew were "citizen soldiers" in the war on terror.

For the first time this year, a victim who did not die at the trade center was recognized -- the city added the name of an attorney who died of lung disease five months later to its official victims' list this year. Many of the first responders have become sick, or died themselves, of respiratory problems and cancers they blame on exposure to trade center dust.

Along with Giuliani, Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton -- seeking her own party's presidential nomination -- attended the ceremonies.

There was no demonstration by the fire union during Giuliani's appearance, or to address last month's blaze that killed two firefighters at a nearby skyscraper that was never torn down despite suffering heavy damaged on Sept. 11.

The toxic tower was in view of people attending the ceremony, providing another grim reminder of the Sept. 11 legacy six years later.

CBS 2's Tamsen Fadal, Magee Hickey, and Jennifer McLogan contributed to this report.

(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)