Shijiazhuang Ping’an Park

Shijiazhuang Ping’an Park

Ping’an Park is located at No. 27 Ping’an South Street, Shijiazhuang City. The park was first built in May 1976 and opened to the public in May 1978. It is a comprehensive park covering a total area of 35,000 square meters, including a lake area of 5,686 square meters. In 1997, the park was renovated with the southwest wall replaced by an open railing, and the Shijiazhuang Concentration Camp Martyrs Memorial was erected, designating it as one of the city’s patriotic education bases. In 2004, the amusement park in the southwest was removed to create a forested plaza, and the south gate was renovated, further enhancing the park’s landscape.

The park adopts the garden architectural style of Suzhou in southern China, featuring pavilions, terraces, corridors, and bridges. With an overall layout centered around the lake, various pavilions and towers are built along the water, creating a scene at every step. The park’s pavilions, terraces, corridors, and waterside pavilions blend harmoniously with its uniquely shaped hills, clear waters, red pillars, blue tiles, small bridges, and flowing streams, forming a compact, tranquil, and uniquely scenic environment. Being here feels like stepping into a natural bonsai. In terms of greening, the park mainly plants pines, bamboos, and plum blossoms, complemented by ginkgoes, plane trees, magnolia, peach blossoms, and roses, reflecting the ancient ideal of the “Three Friends of Winter”—pine, bamboo, and plum. As the city developed and roads were widened, Ping’an Park’s area has decreased, and the number of amusement facilities has dropped from a peak of 15 to 5.

On the east side of the park’s south gate is a newly built swimming area, which also serves as Shijiazhuang’s winter swimming base. On the west side of the south gate, there are amusement facilities such as bumper cars, flying chairs, and a children’s playground. The children’s playground is the latest large-scale entertainment project introduced to aid children’s intellectual development, combining fun and fitness. The park also offers paddle boats, angel carts, and fitness equipment for visitors’ enjoyment and exercise.

Green Shade Plaza: Located west of the south gate, this 700-square-meter area was formerly a children’s playground. After renovation, it became Green Shade Plaza, a primary fitness spot for visitors. To encourage rapid tree shade, the park planted over ten plane trees with trunks over 30 centimeters in diameter, which have since served their purpose well.

Moon Gate: A traditional architectural feature, especially common in Suzhou and Hangzhou, moon gates vary in length and can be adorned with carved patterns or covered with blue tiles, often serving as secondary gates in large residences or private gardens. This architectural element can complement main landscapes or act as a screen wall, partially concealing park scenes to enhance their mystery.

Ox Horn Hill: Named for its resemblance to an ox horn, the hill features many cement animal sculptures, such as giraffes, rabbits, tigers, and sika deer, all creatively repurposed from the frames of flower arrangements, now forming a children’s play area. Despite its small size, the hill includes a cave, one of its clever details. Opposite the cave stands a welcoming stone.

Azure Wave Corridor: A classic example of traditional Jiangnan garden architecture, this structure is built along Taiping Lake, featuring red pillars and green tiles. Its central hall houses a colorful statue of the “God of Longevity.” Above it hangs a plaque inscribed with the characters “Dawn Garden, Fragrant Path.” The corridor blends seamlessly with the surrounding lawn, pine and cypress shapes, magnolia blossoms, and pathways, creating a simple, bright, and unpretentiously natural style. The winding corridors on both sides are asymmetrical, with a four-cornered pointed pavilion at the southern end and a raised platform on the north. Beneath the platform lies a dock, offering visitors the sensation of being aboard a lakeside painted boat. Gazing across Taiping Lake, there’s even a “painted boat” that extends into the water—it’s actually a bridge, though not fully connected, ending at a pavilion. Its elegant structure creates a dreamlike atmosphere, especially in light mist. Inspired by the poetic line “I sought her in a thousand dreams, only to find her where the lanterns glow,” it’s affectionately called the “Dream-Seeking Bridge.”

Emerald Drink Garden: Separated from the main garden by a bamboo grove yet connected by paths and a stream, the Emerald Drink Garden invites exploration through its semi-hidden charm. Passing through a stone gate engraved with the seal-script characters “Drink Green,” visitors are greeted by a sudden, enchanting view. Over the small “Pipa Lake,” the meandering “Rain-Listening Bridge” offers a vantage point to admire the upright emerald bamboos, swaying tender green willows, and the calm azure lake—so much green it intoxicates even before drinking, hence its name.

Pagoda Hill: Named for its replica of Yan’an’s iconic pagoda. The hill features numerous exquisitely crafted evergreen plant sculptures—some resembling writhing green snakes, others like jade pillars or small pavilions—demonstrating the high skill level of today’s landscape artists. At the pagoda’s northern corner lies a small pool where water flows down a bamboo pipe into the mouth of a golden toad sculpted from piled stones. This scene is called “Golden Toad Playing with Water.”

Peach Blossom Grove: Comprising dozens of pink peach trees scattered across the lawn, in spring, against the jade-like green grass, the trees bloom in tender pink, passionate red, and pure white—a breathtaking sight. By late spring, gentle breezes bring a true experience of falling petals.

Ping’an Hill: Embraced by Ping’an Lake, it is the park’s largest and tallest hill. Lush with bamboo and trees, its main peak features the “Cool Breeze Pavilion,” the highest point in the park. From here, the entire park unfolds below, offering a refreshing and uplifting panorama. It’s the perfect spot to admire this hanging Jiangnan painting in the heart of the city and to appreciate this fresh, profound, wordless “Recalling Jiangnan” poem.

Pearl Hill: Known for its many ginkgo trees, complemented by maple trees. In autumn, the pale yellow ginkgo fruits, golden leaves, and fiery red maples create a stunning view. In winter, the hill’s rugged tree silhouettes contrast beautifully with the frost-defying winter plums blooming across the way, bringing life to the Jiangnan scenery in both autumn and winter.

Swimming Pool: Serving as Shijiazhuang’s winter swimming base, it’s where enthusiasts brave the icy waters in winter to boost fitness and strengthen willpower—a win-win activity. In summer, the crystal-clear water ripples invitingly, with pebble-formed rockeries and a gently flowing stream, making visitors feel immersed in nature. It’s a popular summer retreat. With attractions year-round, this “urban paradise” is a great place to unwind.