Obama lands in Ghana to a warm welcome

(CNN) - President Barack Obama, accompanied by his wife, Michelle, and their two daughters arrived in Ghana on Friday night for his first visit to sub-Saharan Africa since taking office, sparking excitement in the west African nation.

Obama is expected to address lawmakers Saturday and tour the Cape Coast Castle, which was used in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

The Obamas will also visit a hospital in the capital Accra that specializes in maternal and child health, said Michelle Gavin, the White House senior director for African affairs.

The president was met at the airport in Accra by his Ghanaian counterpart John Atta Mills as a crowd of dignitaries gathered to greet him. Traditional
dancers and drummers performed in the background.

The visit by the first African-American president in the United States sparked a frenzy in the country as street vendors stocked miniature U.S. flags. Massive billboards with pictures of a smiling Obama and "akwaaba, " the local word for welcome, were set up in the capital.