President takes the family for shave ice, bowling on a rainy vacation day
President Barack Obama laughs with employee Renee Ebia, of Kailua, Hawaii., as he eats his Shave Ice at Island Snow at Kailua Beach Center while on vacation with the first family in Kailua, Hawaii, Monday, Dec. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
President Barack Obama travels by motorcade to his holiday vacation residence in Kailua, Hawaii, Monday, Dec. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama travel by motorcade on Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe, Hawaii, Monday, Dec. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
A roadside sign seen from the media bus window welcomes President Barack Obama, Monday, Dec. 27, 2010, in Kanoeh, Hawaii, that reads "Pres. Obama We Salute You Go Navy Go Punahou." Obama graduated from Punahou School in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
President Barack Obama takes a bite of his Shave Ice at Island Snow at Kailua Beach Center while on vacation with the first family in Kailua, Hawaii, Monday, Dec. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
President Barack Obama, right, his daughter Malia, second from right, and family and friends eat Shave Ice at Island Snow at Kailua Beach Center while on vacation with the first family in Kailua, Hawaii, Monday, Dec. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
President Barack Obama, third from left, orders shave ice at Island Snow at Kailua Beach Center while on vacation with the first family in Kailua, Hawaii, Monday, Dec. 27, 2010. Second from left is Malia Obama. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
President Barack Obama went bowling, played hoops and topped off a cloudy, drizzly vacation day with a short trek for shave ice treats.
The president’s motorcade arrived at "Island Snow" in Kailua at about 4:15 p.m. Obama’s entourage included more than a dozen adults and young kids, among them first daughters Sasha and Malia.
"Once you’ve ordered, go back!" Obama told the giddy group at the counter.
He picked up the tab left money in the tip jar.
"It’s really good," Obama said after tasting his Melona, cherry and lemon-lime icy treat.
He then took group photos with the beaming young clerks, thanking them before leaving.
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Earlier in the afteroon, the president, 12-year-old Malia and 9-year-old Sasha went bowling at the alley at Marine Corps Base Hawaii. The Obamas later were joined by family friends for some basketball, a sport the president prefers to bowling.
While Obama is a frequent golfer and basketball player, he hasn’t proven himself to be an expert bowler. A 2008 campaign stop at a Pennsylvania bowling alley proved an embarrassment for Obama when he bowled a 37.
The president’s party played basketball on a court at the Marine base that has become a sanctuary for the Obamas on their vacations here. The president golfs on the base course, the first couple uses its gym for morning workouts and the first family often visits a secluded beach there.
But Obamas haven’t had much in the way of beach weather since the president arrived Thursday. Clouds hung over the island of Oahu and more rain is forecast throughout the week.
The weather has given the privacy-seeking president an excuse to avoid the spotlight during his vacation. Thus far, the president has limited his movements to time with his family at their rented oceanfront home and trips to the base.
Before going bowling, Obama and his wife worked out again this morning at the gym at the Marine Corps Base Hawaii.
Their motocade left the house at about 8 a.m. and returned aftet 9:30 a.m.
Along the way, a family of four waved American flags as the motocade drove past.
