"Looks Like a Sanitary Pad, Not a Plum Blossom"…Controversy Over Train Station Design in China

Resembling Feminine Products More Than Plum Blossoms, Local Netizens Stir Controversy

The new train station Xi'an in Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, China, has become a hot topic for resembling a sanitary pad.

Bird's-eye view of North Nanjing Station. [Image source: Captured from Chinese Weibo]

On the 16th (local time), the British BBC reported that Nanjing City is scheduled to start construction in the first half of this year and released a bird's-eye view of the North Nanjing Station. The train station is said to be inspired by the city's famous plum blossom. In fact, Nanjing holds an annual plum blossom festival every spring, and there is also Plum Blossom Mountain, where about 40,000 plum trees are concentrated.

However, Chinese netizens who saw this bird's-eye view pointed out that it looks more like a sanitary pad than a plum blossom. One netizen criticized on Weibo (China's social networking service, SNS), saying, "This is a giant sanitary pad," and added, "It's embarrassing to say it looks like a plum blossom." This post garnered millions of views. Another netizen wittily questioned, "We can all say it's a sanitary pad right away, so why can't the architects?" Additionally, there was criticism that the plum blossom has 5 to 6 petals, but the design shows only 4 petal-like parts, so it cannot be considered a plum blossom. Also, the sizes of the petal parts are uneven, making it look even more like a wing-shaped sanitary pad.

Local Chinese media reported that the preliminary design plan was approved by the Jiangsu Provincial Government and China State Railway Group. The construction is expected to cost 20 billion yuan (approximately 3.816 trillion won), and upon completion in early 2028, it is expected to become Nanjing City's largest station, serving 36.5 million passengers annually.

This is not the first time a unique Chinese architectural structure has become a topic of conversation. The China Central Television (CCTV) building in Beijing is already famous for its nickname "Big Underpants," and there are other buildings resembling teapots or ancient coins. In particular, Guangzhou City in Guangdong Province has even been mocked as a "nouveau riche city" due to a coin-shaped building.