Japan is a strange place with some very strange things in it. Today I definitely visited one of the weirder museums not just in Japan but probably the whole world. Since it was raining and cold today I thought a trip to somewhere indoors would nice so of course I visited the world’s only parasite museum (or at least only completely dedicated parasite museum). Not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a great day out but since the rain and wind were washing away the Sakura and making what should be the nicest time of year in Japan a bit damp it seemed like a good idea.
Visiting the museum is probably one of the only times I’ve been glad I can’t yet read Japanese fluently as I’m not sure I want to know what all those parasites would do to me. Not that there is much to say anyway so here are some pictures. Here are some pictures!
A mantis with some worms exploding out of it and some really creepy ant-like things.
A gentleman whose trousers no longer fit and another who no longer has a face, both spread by mosquitos.
A stomach with worms exploding out of it and a mouse with an exploding stomach.
A crab with what looked like really cute furry gloves but which was actually a parasite. Also it looks like I have to watch out for that well known Gnathostomiasis. Not that I can even pronounce it but if I ever see it walking down the street I’ll be well prepared to run away from it.
What pleasures will I beguile you with next time, I’m sure your all looking forward to it. For anyone interested in visiting this weird and intriguing (and free) museum please see here http://www.kiseichu.org/Pages/english.aspx where their website wisely informs you to ‘ Try to think about parasites without a feeling of fear, and take the time to learn about their wonderful world of the Parasites.’
