If post offices are numbered in chronological order, I wonder why Naalehu has a higher number than Ocean View. Maybe my theory is completely off. Naalehu is between Ocean View and Pahala, a former sugar town that survived the modern age. Waiohinu is also close by, and if I recall correctly, that's a town that was completely moved on flat-bed trucks after sugar died to another area.
Naalehu is pristine and rustic, a fading beauty that has vigor and possibly the most spacious bakery in the islands, Punaluu Bake Shop. It was packed in the late afternoon when I arrived. I didn't expect any of this, thinking I'd just pick up some pastries and be on my way.
The Portuguese Bean Soup was good, though a bit cold. I wasn't going to complain after being hungry all day, and seeing how busy they were. There were so many different pastries. They were sold out of some, and I also picked up cookies and a coffee cake (as a gift). Getting there early in the day and sitting in the shaded table areas would've been nice.
There was also a restaurant a block away, which I knew about only because of a sign on the main rain. That was tempting, but I had my soup and hit the road to Pahala. Naalehu is 15 miles from Pahala, where the only high school in Ka‘u district exists. It's a long haul for anyone who attends high school, and there's nothing but ranches and a golf course in between. I see an occasional basketball court, but barely any kids shooting buckets. It's a lonely place, maybe, aging and grand.
The Naalehu Theater has been spared from any "progress", thankfully. Hopefully, it can be useful again one day, similar to the Lihue Theater on Kauai, which is now a condo for elderly folks.
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