The oldest park in Jing'an District - Zhabei Park - this is my first time visiting!

Zhabei Park is located at 1555 Gonghexin Road, Jing'an District, Shanghai. It is adjacent to Gonghexin Road in the west, Luochuan East Road in the south, Pingxingguan Road in the east, and Yanchang Road in the north. The park covers an area of 136,900 square meters, of which the green area is 97,500 square meters. Zhabei Park was completed and opened in 1946, expanded from 1979 to 1981, and fully renovated from 2018 to 2019. The park has a total of 9,470 trees and shrubs, with a ratio of 1:1.81 between trees and shrubs, and a ratio of 1:0.44 between evergreen and deciduous trees. In October 2018, Zhabei Park won the first prize in the flower border display, according to the comprehensive score of experts organized by the Shanghai Park Industry Association. In 2018, Zhabei Park was successfully rated as a five-star park in Shanghai. In February 2023, after two consecutive years of comprehensive evaluation in 2021 and 2022, Zhabei Park was rated as a five-star park. Zhabei Park is the oldest park in Jing'an District. The park was originally a cemetery built in memory of the democratic revolutionary Song Jiaoren, commonly known as Song Park, and later renamed Jiaoren Park. On the eve of liberation, a group of revolutionaries were shot and buried alive here. After liberation, the Shanghai Municipal People's Government renamed the park Zhabei Park. In 1959, Zhabei Park built new park gates, pavilions, corridors, tea rooms, exhibition halls, greenhouses, etc. From 1962 to 1964, Zhabei Park successively built an ice rink, a boat dock, and a reading room. In 1979, after adjustment and expansion, Zhabei Park covered an area of 136,900 square meters. From 1979 to 1981, Zhabei Park invested CNY 960,000 to expand again, rebuild the main gate, and build a sales department, stone bridge, waterside pavilion, double pavilion, hexagonal pavilion (Figure 4), garden corridor, revetment, and other facilities, and restored Song Jiaoren's tomb as it was. From 1985 to 1990, Zhabei Park built a historical museum, a long corridor (Figure 19), a propaganda corridor, the Three Pools Mirroring the Moon (Figure 5), a guest house, a round flower bed at the gate, an aluminum alloy greenhouse, etc. In 2018, the park was renovated again, retaining the big trees, adjusting the layout structure of the park, and strengthening the characteristics of Chinese classical gardens. The west gate was rebuilt (Figure 1), the Shuangfeng Shuangyuan (Figure 7, 8) was newly built, and the architectural style in the park was unified; the landscape of the central lake area was reshaped, the water quality was purified, the waterfront space was increased, and the plant characteristics were enriched; the amusement, fitness, rest, and other service facilities were updated, and the basic facilities such as security, water supply and drainage, power supply, and emergency shelter were improved; the historical heritage of the park was highlighted, and a high-quality comprehensive park with ecological, rest, ornamental, and cultural functions was created. Zhabei Park is generally rectangular from west to east, with a natural layout. The western park is dominated by Song Jiaoren's tomb, and there is a zelkova square along the side of Gonghexin Road. The central park is the main scenic area, with a lake area of more than 10,000 square meters, with varying widths and narrowness of the water surface and winding shorelines. To the west of the lake are Shuangfeng Shuangyuan and the waterfront square; in the lake, there are three islands, Jinyou, Cuiyou, and Xige, with changing terrain, distinct plant seasons, and pavilions dotted among them. The land islands are connected by bridges, among which the Tianguang and Yunying bridges are quite distinctive; the Qian Family Ancestral Hall in the east of the lake is surrounded by ginkgo, green maple, and plane trees, complementing each other. The eastern park has scenic spots such as Banmu Pond, children's playground, and fitness trail. Since its establishment, Zhabei Park has undergone many renovations and expansions. Song Jiaoren's tomb (Figure 2) and the Qian Family Ancestral Hall (Figure 3) in the park are both cultural relic protection units in Shanghai. There is also a "square bunker" (Figure 9) in the park. The "square bunker" is a square reinforced concrete structure, partially buried in the soil, with machine gun observation ports on the southeast side and an entrance and exit on the west side. In 1932, the Japanese Marine Corps stationed in Shanghai attacked the Chinese 19th Route Army garrison, triggering the "January 28 Incident." Near the southeast side of Zhabei Park, the Baziqiao position (now the intersection of Shuicheng Road and Liuying Road in Hongkou District) was lost and regained three times, and finally, until the ceasefire, the Japanese army was unable to completely control Baziqiao. This bunker was one of the defensive bunkers built to resist the Japanese invaders at that time and has been preserved to this day. Take some time to visit! It's a big and nice park.