Presidential candidate Barack Obama and his family were greeted with much fanfare as they arrived in Hawaii today for a week long vacation.

Thousands turned out for a public rally at Keehi Lagoon Beach Park.

The line started at 4:30am, and continued to grow until the gates opened at 12:30pm.

The crowd went through extended security measures before being allowed inside to see Obama's history making visit.

Fun, exciting, and inspiring -- that's how folks described the event.

An estimated 4,000 Obama supporters turned out to Keehi Lagoon today.

One thing's for sure -- Obama left a huge impression.

"Awesome! Man I feel so fortunate!" said Salt Lake resident Tony Agao.

Tony Agao still can't believe what happened.

He not only got to see Barack Obama and hear his speech in person, Agao also got to meet him.

"We look at each other. We went grab each other, hug each other oh local style! I tell you, you never lose touch you can tell he never lose touch local the roots," said Agao.

And it was Obama's references to his roots that got his supporters pumped up -- and what made this speech different from all his other speeches.

"Might go to Zippy's. I might go to Rainbow Drive-In. Yeah! I'm going to go get some shave ice. I'm going to go body surfing at an undisclosed location," said Sen. Barack Obama, (D) Presidential Nominee.

After all, the Obamas are here on vacation, and here to see family.

"So I want you to know we're not here to politic, what we're mainly here to do is say thank you," said Obama.

"I think it was awesome. I think it's great how much he shared how much the spirit of Hawaii made a difference with him," said Waikele resident Bryan Toda.

"He has a great charismatic thing about him. He's a great speaker and I think he gets people excited when he talks and they listen to him," said Palolo resident Kendra Akase.

"I think people are touched by his message and want to come out and see him and he seems like a nice guy to get to know," said Kailua resident Tom Holowach.

While many folks now have the proof to show they were here, Tony Agao got something extra special.

"Just before he went jump into the van, he was signing and this was the last article he went sign," said Agao.

Agao plans to give the autographed book to his nine-year old son.

Today was certainly a once in a lifetime opportunity for many of these folks -- a day they won't soon forget.

"Aloha! Thank you everybody. I'll see you on the beach, yeah!" said Obama.

Today's rally was Obama's only free scheduled public event while here in the islands.

If you see Senator Obama anywhere in Hawaii. Don't hesitate to give us a call here at the station. 591-4278
We'd also like to see any pictures or video clips you have of Obama's visit. You can send them to news@khon2.com