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President-elect Barack Obama steps aboard a military plane at Chicago Midway Airport January 4, 2009 before flying to Andrews Air Force Base near Washington. Obama is moving to Washington 16 days before being sworn in as the 44th President of the United States on January 20.
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Barack Obama is not afraid to admit it -- he got a little emotional before leaving Chicago for Washington where he will soon become the next president of the United States.
"I've got to say that I choked up a little bit leaving my house today," said Obama, who will become the nation's first black president when he takes office on January 20.
Obama, who will soon be dealing with a major economic crisis, two wars and renewed Middle East violence, took a moment to reflect before shutting the door of his house and heading off for his new life.
He said it hit him as he flipped through a photo album for his 10-year-old daughter Malia, which was given to her by one of her oldest friends.
"I just looked through the pages. The house was empty. It was a little tough. It got me," he told reporters after boarding the Air Force Boeing 757 that would take him to Washington.
But after his sentimental farewell to their home, Obama headed to the airport to fly to Washington and join his wife Michelle and daughters Malia and Sasha, 7.
They arrived in Washington on Saturday to settle in to a hotel without the media entourage that follows Obama everywhere. Malia and Sasha start school on Monday.
Asked if he was excited about the move, Obama alluded to the grueling presidential campaign when he said: "Yeah, although living in a hotel for two weeks -- we kind of did that for two years."
The Obamas will stay at the luxury Hay Adams Hotel across a park from the White House until January 15 when they move into Blair House, which serves as the official guest house and residence for presidents elect for several days before the inauguration.
Obama was already beginning to experience what it will be like to be a president.
He traveled aboard the military aircraft often used to fly Vice President Dick Cheney around.
Although the airplane was not called Air Force One because Obama is not yet president, it had all the trappings of the real thing: the presidential seal at the front of the plane, name cards with the presidential seal and cups and plates emblazoned with "Air Force One."
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(Agencies)
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美國當選總統奧巴馬不久將走馬上任，他坦稱自己在離開芝加哥前往華盛頓之前有些傷感。
奧巴馬說：“坦白地說，今天離家前我有點哽咽得說不出話。”奧巴馬將于本月20日就職成為美國歷史上的首位非洲裔總統。
奧巴馬就任后將面臨嚴重經濟危機、兩場戰爭以及新一輪中東沖突等各種棘手的問題。關上芝加哥的家門，走向新的生活之前，奧巴馬陷入了沉思。
他說，在翻看10歲女兒瑪利亞的一本相冊時有些傷感，這本相冊是瑪利亞的一個老朋友送給她的。
他在飛赴華盛頓的空軍波音757飛機上接受記者采訪時說：“我只是翻了翻相冊，房間里空蕩蕩的，讓人有些不舍和難過。”
奧巴馬戀戀不舍地告別芝加哥之后，立刻趕赴機場前往華盛頓與夫人米歇爾和兩個女兒---瑪利亞和7歲的薩沙會合。
米歇爾和兩個女兒已于上周六抵達華盛頓并入住賓館，沒有受到記者的“圍追”。瑪麗亞和薩沙已于本周一開始上學。
在被問及搬來華盛頓是否激動時，奧巴馬暗指讓人精疲力盡的總統大選說：“是啊，盡管我們要在賓館住兩周---不過我們似乎已經住了兩年。”
奧巴馬全家將在與白宮一街之隔的海亞當斯豪華酒店住到本月15日，之后他們將搬至“布萊爾國賓館”，按照慣例，歷屆當選總統就職前幾天都住在這。
奧巴馬已經開始體會到當總統的滋味了。
他所搭乘的軍用飛機之前常為現任副總統迪克?切尼所用。
盡管奧巴馬尚未正式就職，這架飛機還不能稱為“空軍一號”，但它與其相差無幾：機身前部的總統標識、帶有總統印章的名片、有“空軍一號”字樣裝飾的杯盤等物品一應俱全。
（實習生許雅寧 英語點津姍姍編輯）
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