A Proposed train station design in Nanjing sparks comparisons online.
A new transportation hub planned for Nanjing city has gotten significant attention from Chinese social media users, but perhaps not for the reasons intended.
Officials stated the North Nanjing railway terminal’s layout drew inspiration from plum blossoms, the regional flower. However, online audiences noted its resemblance to feminine hygiene products instead.
On social platforms like Weibo, comments questioned how architects missed cues pointing to the uncanny similarity. “This looks more like a giant sanitary pad than a plum,” one user observed.
Others saw the humour in the situation, joking that the design was “ahead of its time” in exposing period taboos. The preliminary plans reportedly gained approval from provincial and railway authorities.
Scheduled to break ground in 2024, the project will span over 37 square kilometers and have a budget of around 20 billion yuan ($2.7 billion). Nanjing aims to boost connectivity as China’s first high-speed rail hub city.
However, the station design now faces unexpected criticism. This is not the lone architecture in China drawing unanticipated likenesses – the CCTV headquarters in Beijing was nicknamed “big boxer shorts.”
Authorities have yet to respond to the widespread online comparisons swirling around their ambitious transportation development in Nanjing.
