By JAYMES SONG and JULIE PACE
Associated Press
KAILUA, Hawaii – President Barack Obama made the first public appearance of his vacation Monday, stopping by one of his favorite local shops for a Hawaiian snow cone known as “shave ice.”
The president, dressed casually in a black polo shirt, khaki shorts and flip-flops, ordered a flavor combination of melon, lemon-lime and cherry at Island Snow, a store Obama has frequented during past trips to Hawaii. The president chatted with excited workers and asked them about their holidays as he placed about a dozen more orders for his family and friends.
The president stood outside under cloudy, threatening skies to enjoy his shave ice with daughters Malia and Sasha, and several of the family friends from Hawaii and Chicago who have joined Obama here.