Thank you to Visit San Diego for hosting us. As always, all opinions are 100% our own.

We have been to the lovely Balboa Park many times but we go back often as there are many museums to visit and we're not even close to checking all of them out yet. On our most recent visit, we explored the Museum of Man. We were especially interested in this museum because they had a special Cannibals exhibit going on.

The Museum of Man is one of the more popular museums of Balboa Park which inspires human connections by exploring the human experience. They have interesting exhibits ranging from Beerology to Monsters to the current Cannibals: Myth & Reality. 

The main building had a lower and upper level and for an extra fee they offer a tour of the California Tower. The tower has been closed for 80 years and they just opened it back up to the public. You have to reserve a time for the 40 minute tour and we didn't get a chance to tour it this time around, but hoping we can catch it next time. 

The first floor started out with a beer section showcasing how artifacts reveal links between beer and culture. In the back was a huge display of Egyptian collections featuring hieroglyphic stone carvings, jewelry, pottery, amulets, and everyday objects. To the left side was the Monster exhibit which we enjoyed the most. It is meant for children but we’re kids at heart, so we had a fun time in this section. 

There is a cute little Monster Theater where you can put on a show with cardboard monsters and adorable stumps of wood where children can sit and watch the show. There is also a large board with sticker pieces of different body parts of animals and monsters where you can create your own monster. Another fun spot was the monster boat where we took advantage of silly photo ops.

The Cannibals exhibit was located across the street from the main building and it starts off with movie posters and TV shows playing on multiple small screens. They included movies and shows such as Silence of the Lambs and The Walking Dead. They go on to explain what cannibalism is and how we humans think of it.

The next section was about Traveler’s Fears and visitors wrote down their personal fears from their travels. We laughed at some of the comments as they were pretty hilarious like, “I didn’t realize there was was so much roadkill in Oklahoma”. 

Another fun section was the life size game of Operation. Remember that game? You have to pick body parts through a tiny hole with tongs and if you hit the side of the board, the buzzer will go off. You definitely need a steady hand for this game if you are playing with the smaller game board version. I played this game with friends when I was younger and I would be terrified when the buzzer went off and I’d jump every single time. 

There are a few more interesting sections we went through like the shipwreck scenario, the movie theater and the remedy section. They did a great job with this exhibit with interactive games and left us with questions wondering what we would do if were in a situation of dire need with no food options.

It took us about 2 hours to view the entire museum and after we were done, we enjoyed cocktails and appetizers at the famous Prado. We’ve always heard rave reviews about this restaurant and we agree that the food is excellent here. We ordered a flatbread pizza, salad and beef skewers from their Happy Hour menu and everything was very flavorful. The plates were also very generous portions so make sure you come hungry. If you are visiting Balboa Park in the early evening, make sure to take advantage of Prado’s Happy Hour deals from 4-6 PM.

For more things to do in Balboa Park, check out our posts on The Spanish Village Art Center, the Old Cactus Garden, and the Japanese Friendship Garden.