Editor’s note:Jing’an sits at the heart of Shanghai. It represents the essence of the history and culture of the city, home to century-old buildings, big-name attractions, glitzy retail malls and charming art galleries. Annual music and art events give the district a distinctive ambience. In this series, we showcase the highlights of Jing’an.
Spring has officially arrived, and what better harbinger of winter’s end than the annual tulip festival in Daning Park. This year, admission to the festival is free!
It’s truly a feast for the eyes. On display are more than 1.3 million tulips of 40 different species. Some of the flowers are in full blossom; others will follow, producing carpets of color through April 7.
The display area covers almost 2.5 hectares and includes themed floral designs like a giant musical score and a colorful lollipop.
On March 16, the tulips provided a stunning backdrop to the 2019 Jing’an International Women’s Marathon, which attracted 4,000 runners from 63 cities in China and 10 foreign countries, including the US, Britain UK, Japan, Australia and Tanzania.
Of the participants, 3,000 women ran the 10-kilometer race and 250 women finished the 4.5-kilometer race with their boyfriends. Men also competed in the 10-kilometer race.
The runners traversed the park, from its artificial white sand beach and past manicured tulip beds.
Wang Wentian won the championship in the 10-kilometer women’s group, clocking 39 minutes and 15 seconds. Gong Yuanyuan came in second at 40 minutes, 19 seconds. Third place went to Yue Qinghua in a time of 40 minutes, 56 seconds.
Female runners wore pink, a color symbolizing the campaign to raise awareness about breast cancer. Every female runner received a red rose. Well, tulip stems droop pretty quickly.
Couples finishing the race hand-in-hand included a man surnamed Chen and his girlfriend surnamed Tian. Both are white-collar workers in Jing’an.
Chen said they became acquainted at a fitness club. He was cheering her along when she started to show exhaustion about 2 kilometers from the finish line.
“We wanted to help raise awareness of women’s health through the event,” said Yu Biao, director of the Jing’an Sports Bureau. “Apart from that, the event gave runners the enjoyment of beautiful flowers lining the route.”
Where to see flowers in parks around Jing’an:
1.Jing’an Park on Nanjing Road W: magnolias and camellias (March to May)
2.Jing’an Sculpture Park on Beijing Road W: tulips, cherry blossoms and plum blossoms (May to April)
3.Butterfly Bay Park at the intersection of Taixing and Kangding roads: purple magnolias (March to April)
4.Ever-Bright Greenery on Huasheng Road: plum blossoms (March)
5.Zhabei Park on Gonghexin Road: magnolias, cherry blossoms and crabapple flowers (May to April)
Ling’nan Park: crabapple flowers (May to April)
A single purchase
