Obama chows down with troops

KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) - Sen. Barack Obama dined with U.S. troops at an American base in the Afghan capital Sunday morning before an expected meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

"This is my favorite thing to do," Obama said, as he sat with about two dozen soldiers, sailors and airmen in a military mess hall in Kabul.

The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee was visiting the Asian nation before he embarks on a tour of the Middle East and Europe, a trip aimed at boosting his foreign policy credentials.

The trip, which comes four months ahead of the presidential election, marks Obama's first visit to Afghanistan. He visited Iraq in 2006.

"The food is excellent, but the company's even better," Obama said. His loaded his plate with bacon and scrambled eggs, but he sidestepped the grits, saying "I'm going to try to be healthy."

Obama spoke briefly to an Associated Press video crew there to record the event.

"To see young people like this, who are doing such excellent work with so much dedication and pride, it makes you feel good about the country," he said. "You want to make sure that everybody back home understands how much pride people take in their work here and how much sacrifice people are making. It's outstanding."