Meguro Parasite Museum

Normally, this wouldn't have been high up on my list of things to see, but since I was already in the neighborhood, why not check out the world's only parasite museum?

Besides, word on the street was that the Meguro Parasite Museum is a hot date spot. No, really. From the NYT:

But in the last several years the museum has also turned into an urban version of Blueberry Hill, where eager couples come to bond and test their mutual mettle. And while two floors filled with graphic pictures of goiters, a world map of infectious diseases and bottle after bottle of hookworms would seem unlikely to put one in a romantic mood, there appears to be no shortage of young lovers willing to play Gomez and Morticia Addams for a day.

Ah, the culture that is Japan. In their defense, maybe seeing gross things is kind of like going to a haunted house or a scary movie; you have opportunities to clutch each other in fear.

Too bad there were no sparks flying and nary a sign of hand-holding during my visit. (This may have been due to my midday Tuesday timing.) Instead, there were a couple of suited guys in their 40s and a younger guy wearing ripped jeans and a flowery hoodie. Slim pickings indeed. Still, the museum's focal piece, an 8.8 m long tapeworm was pretty neat. Apparently, this was taken from the small intestine of a man who'd eaten marinated trout. Let's hope all the sushi I've been eating has been parasite-free.