Arachnophobics and kids, look away now – the spiders are crawling and the statues have breasts.

Claiming to be the only spider museum in the world, the Jupil Spider Museum (주필거미박물관) in Namyangju features a lot more than just spiders. First started in May 2004, the spider museum is a small part of the larger Arachnopia Eco Forest. The name Jupil comes from the name of the founder, Dr. Kim Ju-pil, a Dongguk University professor apparently fascinated by the crawly animals.

It’s worth mentioning the relative remoteness of the area. Despite a state-of-the-art subway station mere meters, cornstalks grow within baseball-throwing distance and roads aren’t necessarily paved. After exiting the subway station, a few maps are around pointing the way to the museum – a mere three kilometers away. If you like a hike, there are plenty of locals dressed in proper hiking attire and equipped with the usual hiking gear.

Waiter, is this the spider museum? The first building’s first floor exhibit features an annex of minerals and rocks. Interesting, and a nice side-show to the main exhibit…

Interesting, some more natural wonders… Um, spiders…?

Yeah, not there yet – a nice collection of statues however.

OK, getting warmer. Presenting a relatively large bear – the Ursus spelaeus. At 3 meters long and 700-800kg large, I wouldn’t want to mess with this guy.

Alright, here we go! Dozens of preserved species in your standard cylinders.

Aren’t they so cute when they hang from the side of the aquarium? Presenting the Indian Ornamental – not the biggest spider ever, but probably still scary to some.

Somehow they don’t look so scary when you get to see them in real life – the Giant White-Knee. One of the staff pulled out another hairy spider to place on my hand – probably the sort of things that freaks the kids out…

A welcome diversion from the spiders – no idea why the area features nude sculptures, but the variety is still an interesting facet.

The sculpture park features a single lane with pieces on either side – and almost no names or artists in sight.

The centerpiece featured an arachnoid and a bust of the doctor.

As the old saying used to go, “But wait, there’s more!” Go up a hill from the spider and doctor to a number of 장승 (jangseung, or wooden totem pole with funny faces). It’s another unusual element to an unusual place.

This guy was kind enough to pose and hold still through the fence. Not pictured in this same area were some ducks and pigs – a veritable farm, just about.

Art? Entitled 소리 (So-ri, or ‘Sound’) by 임형준 (Im Hyeong-jun), this was displayed on the steps up to the art gallery.

Art? Inside the gallery was plenty of wooden works; in another, plenty of stones. In this case, there was no name / artist in sight.

It’s about as unfocused and random as a place I’ve been to in recent months, but that’s actually part of the area’s charm. It’s really not a tourist attraction, and as such is unlikely to be visited by someone just looking for a place to visit and check-off your list. Combine that with a destination that’s not that old, yet has managed to create that rustic feeling. Make this a place to visit if you’re looking for an escape from the typical tourist destinations or the new apartment buildings – there are few tall buildings in sight.

Ratings (out of 5 taeguks): How do I rate destinations?
Ease to arrive:

Foreigner-friendly:

Convenience facilities:

Worth the visit:

Directions to Jupil Spider Museum: take the Jungang line on the Seoul subway system to Ungilsan station (you can transfer to Jungang line via Yongsan on line 1, Wangsimni on line 2 or 5, or Oksu or line 3). Once at Ungilsan station, walk straight out exit 1 and catch a taxi from the taxi stand about 50 meters away. I paid 5,000 won (a quoted price) for the 10 minute trip. While the three kilometers can be hiked (quite a few signs and paved roads to walk along), there’s no way a bus is taking this road. For more information, check out http://www.arachnopia.com/ or call 031-576-7908 (both are Korean only). Admission: 6,000 won; Open from 9am-6pm (last admission at 5:30pm), closed on Monday.

 

© Chris Backe – 2011
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