Obama visits grandfather's grave in Hawaii

[January 04, 2011]  HONOLULU (AP) -- President Barack Obama ended his nearly two-week Hawaiian vacation on a somber note Monday, taking his daughters to visit his grandfather's grave.

The president's motorcade wound through the island of Oahu's mountainous terrain late Monday afternoon on its way to National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl. The president, along with daughters Malia and Sasha, briefly visited the grave of his maternal grandfather, Stanley Dunham.

Obama was raised by his grandparents in Hawaii for much of his childhood. He often returned to the island as an adult to visit his grandmother, who died in the final days of the 2008 presidential campaign.

From the cemetery, the Obamas stopped at the Honolulu Zoo. The president's sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, and her family joined the Obamas for a private tour of the zoo after it had closed to the public.

The Obamas were to leave Hawaii late Monday, arriving in Washington the following day.

They spent their final day in Hawaii at Pyramid Rock, a secluded beach on a nearby marine base. Obama later took his family and friends to Island Snow for shave ice, a Hawaiian snow cone. The local shop is a favorite of the first family; Obama took his daughters there earlier in their trip.

The president, dressed in a white polo shirt, black shorts, flip-flops and a Chicago White Sox baseball cap, paid for the treats for his large entourage with a $100 bill. He stopped to greet crowds that gathered nearby, shaking hands and posing for pictures in the most public outing of his vacation.

[Associated Press; By JULIE PACE]

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.