Obamas unwind with holiday ices

Source: Agencies  |   2008-12-28  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

A DAY after spending a quiet Christmas at their Hawaii vacation retreat, US President-elect Barack Obama and his children watched a dolphin show at an aquatic park and then picked up some shave ice, a local treat.

Obama and his two daughters, Malia and Sasha, made a 90-minute visit to Sea Life Park on Friday. Reporters were not allowed to join Obama but some visitors showed reporters snapshots with him. Malia and Sasha ate shave ice at Kokonuts Shave Ice and Snacks while their dad downed a tuna melt. Obama joked with reporters that he would eat his lunch first, to set an example for his daughters. He then ordered a mound of shave ice, colored orange and green.

He laughed as the children and family friends ordered their snacks. "I'm not arguing anymore," Obama said in faux exasperation when one of the group asked for a complicated blend. "I gave up."