This is the only museum in the world dedicated to parasites. Although it is located quite far from the city center, the museum has become a tourist attraction - those who want to explore the unusual.
Built in 1953 by Dr. Satoru Kamegai, the Meguro Parasitological Museum aims to introduce the public to the diversity of parasites and their life cycles. The museum’s research library houses more than 60,000 parasite species – 300 of which are on display – as well as 50,000 studies and 6,000 books on parasitology.
The ground floor of the museum is mainly filled with maps, showing the regions of the world and what parasites are found there. There are also glass cases on the ground floor displaying some of the parasites that live on animals.
The second floor is dedicated to parasites in the human body. There are many pictures of humans being hosts to parasites, their body parts deformed and blistered by the parasites' destruction.
However, the actual specimens are even more horrifying than the photos suggest; some exhibits even display the parasites crawling out of their animal hosts.
The most notable exhibit on display is the giant tapeworm. At 8.8 meters long, it is the longest tapeworm in the world and is displayed next to a rope of the same length to give visitors a sense of its enormity.
In addition, the Museum Shop located inside the museum also sells books on parasites and products made by the museum itself. The museum is open to visitors free of charge, so if you are interested, definitely stop by.
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