Rain Flower Terrace

Situated outside the Zhonghua Gate in Nanjing, directly opposite the Nanjing Martyr's Memorial, the Rain Flower Terrace complements the rather morbid appearance of the Martyr's Memorial with some beautiful and colourful scenery, in the form of a large park that houses a splendid collection of flowers and statues, strewn across the many paths which meander through the park.

The sense of sight and smell will be suitably entertained with the hundreds of sub-tropical and tropical flowers accounting for a cocktail of scents and smells, as well as a plethora of different shades of nature's own colours.

As the legend goes, a Buddhist Master by the name of Yunguang gave public sermons, preaching about Buddhism in the open area that is the Rain Flower Terrace today and his messages were so powerful that they caused the Heavens to open up and shower down a rain of beautiful flowers, which is what gave rise to the name "Rain Flower Terrace".

There is darker side to the story behind Rain Flower Terrace, with a large number of the Chinese Nationalist Party's opposition (thousands) said to have been detained and executed here, after which time the revolution prevailed and the natural beauty of the park infused with the kind of architecture that turned it into the landmark it is today, including a number significant statues, an in-house museum and a number of graves (tombs)

The park houses an amusement park, which is accessible for a small additional admission fee of only 5 Yuan and this is enjoyed particularly by the children who tag along for the trip, going down as one of the highlights to look forward to.

One can also look forward to buying some Rain Flower Stones to take back home as souvenirs, with prices varying extensively, from about 10 Yuan right up to about 1 000 Yuan.

The Statue of Martyr's is also something to look out for, preceding the north entrance and, as one goes inside, a number of smaller attractions can be accessed, such as the Yuhua Pavilion and the Rain Flower Stone Museum itself, which is actually a store.

In a bid to make the history of the region a little more accessible to the locals and not just the touring masses, a move has been made to make admission to the Rain Flower Terrace free of charge

The most popular entrance is the northern entrance, which is serviced by the subway, so one would get off at the Zhonghua Men Station, with the defining, upwardly stretching obelisk making it very hard to miss.

Bus schedules and numbers are dynamic and change every so often (every few months or so), so it would be wise to always confirm with the local information outlets if any changes have occurred.

Operating Times: 08:00 - 17:00