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Barack Obama Is on a Meaningful Vacation in Indonesia

Former President Barack Obama is making us SO jealous with his slew of post-presidential vacations. From Italy and Hawaii to Tahiti and Guam, Obama has been living it up and soaking in the sun. The family’s first post-White House vacation was to a Coachella mansion in the Palm Springs Valley in California. He even stayed at a $78,000 per night resort in the British Virgin Islands, where he went kitesurfing with billionaire Richard Branson. And no one could forget Michelle Obama’s vacay vibes while visiting the Tuscan countryside in Italia.

But Obama’s latest trip is about a bit more than relaxation—he’ll be living in Indonesia until the end of July, according to Refinery29. He arrived with the whole former first family on Friday. Though they’re starting off the trip at a resort in Ubud, their travels will take them to Jakarta and Yogyakarta for more personal reasons. Obama lived in Jakarta as a 6-year-old boy with his mother, who conducted anthropology research in the old city of Yogyakarta. He lived there for a few years, y’know, before he became a Harvard grad and famous politician.

The definite theme of his journeys seems to be tropical, full of time on the ocean, so I’m guessing he wasn’t a big fan of those brutal Washington DC winters. But don’t worry, he still has ties in Washington DC—last we heard, the Obamas were renting an 8,200-square-foot house in a fancy area of DC called Kalorama. We don’t blame him for traveling so much—after eight years as president, he deserves a nice, long vacation.

Lindsay was the president/editor-in-chief of the UCLA chapter of Her Campus from 2015-2018. She was previously the Viral Section Editor at Her Campus and an Editorial Intern at the headquarters in Boston. Lindsay grew up in Washington state and transitioned to love the Southern California sunshine while studying communications and environmental science at UCLA. Twitter: @WeinbergLindsay.