Kitesurfing, Lunch with Bono, Golfing in Hawaii: All About the Obamas' Life Now
They’ve broken free of the White House bubble and they’re not looking back.
Barack and Michelle Obama have been keeping busy since leaving office nearly two months ago, and as the former president’s new go-to leather jacket might suggest, it’s been more play than work (although they’ve also managed to squeeze in book deals, surprise school visits and meetings on Obama’s presidential library and foundation).
As the former first couple have been settling into their new 8,200-square-foot home in Washington, D.C., they’ve been exploring the city in a whole new way, including a recent visit to the National Gallery of Art that ended with a round of applause from fellow museum-goers.
This was also the first time Obama was spotted wearing his sleek brown leather jacket and new and improved dad jeans - both of which have earned rave reviews from the PEOPLE style team.
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But the Obamas have also been making plenty of time for travel.
Their adventures started on Inauguration Day, Jan. 20, when they took their final flight aboard an Air Force presidential jet - straight to Palm Springs. After spending the weekend there with daughters Malia, 18, and Sasha, 15, the former president and first lady continued on their own to Richard Branson’s private island retreat in the British Virgin Islands.
The couple spent 10 days on the Virgin Group founder’s Necker Island, where the former president tried kitesurfing for the first time - on a dare from his pal Branson.
“We decided to set up a friendly challenge: could Barack learn to kitesurf before I learned to foilboard?” Branson wrote in a post on the Virgin website. “We agreed to have a final day battle to see who could stay up the longest.” (Obama ultimately emerged the victor.)
More recently, the Obamas visited New York City, where they had lunch with musician and activist Bono at Upland restaurant in Manhattan.
A source told PEOPLE at the time that, as Bono and the Obamas walked out of the eatery, “the whole restaurant stood up and applauded and cheered for them. Barack Obama waved at everyone upon leaving.”
And as he has in all of his post-White House outings, the former president looked relaxed and happy as he left the restaurant with a wide smile, wearing a sleek black suit and white shirt with the top few buttons undone.
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While in town, Obama also took his older daughter, Malia, to dinner and a show. The father-daughter duo dined at Emilio’s Ballato, an Italian restaurant in Soho, before attending a revival of Arthur Miller’s The Price on Broadway, starring Danny DeVito and Mark Ruffalo.
They even popped backstage to meet some of the stars.
Obama’s new life also gives him plenty of time for one of his favorite pastimes: golf. During his first post-presidency trip to his native Hawaii this week, Obama played a few rounds of golf at the Mid Pacific Country Club and took in a meal at Buzz’s Steakhouse in Kailua - all with minimal security.
Obama wore a white polo and blue shorts for his golf outing, as well as his new favorite accessory: a big grin.
