Visiting the International Banana Museum – Salton Sea, California
Did you know that somewhere, someone in the world is collecting all the banana shit they can find, and stuffing a small room near the Salton Sea with banana-related clutter? What a world we live in, right?
All this goes down in the International Banana Museum, located in the wasteland known as the Salton Sea area in Southern California. This area is filled with other random roadside oddities (such as Slab City, Bombay Beach and Salvation Mountain, the Ski Inn), so the weirdness of the International Banana Museum fits right in with the ‘theme.’ The International Banana Museum, located right along Highway 111 in an unassuming building that’s so small, if you blink, you’ll miss it.
International Banana Museum – Location and Details
Location:
98775 CA-111
Mecca, CA 92254
Cost: $1 unless you buy something. We always get the banana flavored milkshakes – they’re really good.
Hours: This is a family-run operation and keeps oddball hours so if you are hell-bent on seeing this museum, give them a call. Sometimes it’s open, sometimes it’s closed. It’s at the whim of its owner. I’ve been in the area 3 times – 2 times out of the three trips, it was open. Can’t win ’em all.
Other: No video allowed
Visiting the International Banana Museum
If you’re expecting a museum-museum, with docents and well-lit displays of artifacts, you won’t find this here. Hell, you’re not even going to learn anything about these goddamn bananas! Basically, this is a small room filled to the rafters of banana-themed shit. You’ll be assaulted with the color yellow as you view the displays. The setup reminded me of an antique shop, rather than a museum.
The International Banana Museum is the passion project and collection of a family who is banana for bananas.
It’s definitely a unique place to go – not somewhere you should go out of your way for, but if you’re in the Salton Sea area, hell, you’ve already sold your soul, so I’ll assume you enjoy weird shit in the desert — and the International Banana Museum is right up your alley.
The best part of the International Banana Museum isn’t really the displays; it’s the milkshakes. They are delicious. Even my husband – who is a milkshake connoisseur – thought it was one of the best he’s ever had. They have all kinds of flavors – and you don’t have to get banana just because you’re at a banana museum — but I always opt for a banana chocolate milkshake.
The owner himself will make your milkshake and while he’s doing so, you can look around and take photos. There’s just so much stuff here, it’s a little overwhelming, but it was fun to see some of the memorabilia – I was surprised on how much banana-themed junk I’ve owned at one point in my life.
As for why – like, why BANANAS? Why collect this stuff? Well, the answer from the owner himself is that he just likes bananas. No further explanation necessary. Hey, I can get behind that. I’ve always like Humpty Dumpy-related stuff and I can’t offer up solid reasoning behind it.
International Banana Museum – Final Thoughts
You have to appreciate this place for what it is – it’s an ice cream parlor with a room full of banana tchockies. You will not learn anything about bananas here; you’re just going to see banana stuffed toys, banana scented candles, banana paintings and Chiquita stickers. The staff is also very friendly and welcoming.
It’s absolutely worth a stop but the erratic hours make it challenging to be here at the right place/right time. If you drive by, swing in and see if they’re open – even if you’re not interested in the knickknacks, the ice cream treats are the best!
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