President Barack Obama's historic trip to Africa is officially underway, and scores of Kenyan residents turned out to watch him arrive. He's the first U.S. sitting president to visit the country.
The President of Kenya greeted Obama when he arrived in Nairobi Friday, according to CNN. The U.S. president was welcomed with a red carpet. Flags of Kenya and the U.S. lined the road from the main airport in Nairobi, where Obama landed, and billboards welcoming his arrival were erected all over the city. Obama first traveled to Kenya almost 30 years ago to learn more about his father for his memoir, "Dreams From My Father."
Locals came out in droves to watch Obama's motorcade roll past on its way to the hotel. E.J. Hogendoorn, deputy program director for Africa at the International Crisis Group, said Kenyans "think of [Obama] as Kenyan-American," according to Fox News.
Obama will be in Africa for two days. His trip will include a stop in Ethiopia, the first presidential visit to the country. The First Family did not accompany him, but his entourage includes 200 investigators who will be attending the Global Entrepreneurship Summit.
Obama has already visited with dozens of his own family members. His step-grandmother, half-sister and others were present at the Villa Rose Kempinsi Hotel. They met for less than two hours after Air Force One landed at Kenyatta International Airport, according to the Washington Post. Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., the president's father, was born in Kenya and lived there for most of his life.
