Kah Kee Park
When the Xiamen University and Jimei School were set up by Tan Kah Kee, he blended the traditional Chinese architectural techniques with western buildings to create buildings that were of the Kah Kee style. The style is a fusion of western and Chinese arts with the beautiful delicacy of colors and shapes. The Kah Kee Park showcases this beautiful architecture and the legacy which was left behind by Kah Kee.
When Tan Kah-kee set up Jimei School and Xiamen University, he blended Chinese traditional architectural techniques into western buildings and created buildings of Kah-kee style by fusion of Chinese and Western arts with the unmatched delicacy of shapes and colors, another legacy left by Kah-kee to Xiamen. The garden covers an area of more than 30000 square meters with a building area of 5500 square meters.
Highlights of the Kah Kee Park
History of the Park
The Kah Kee Park is located in the Ji Mei village which is the hometown of Tan Kah Kee, a well-known overseas Chinese who devoted his time to educational causes in his homeland. Jimei is today one of the most well-known tourist locations in Xiamen City due to its social and beautiful natural sights and the academic atmosphere that it has.
Garden
The Kah Kee Park covers an area of over 30,000 square meters. The building area itself is that of 5500 square meters. Inside the park, there are towers and pavilions with glazed roof tiles, larmiers, and red pillars. All of these are then connected along its zigzag corridor for forming a cloth for the dragon exhibition. The Chinese style courtyards remain dominant.
Places to Visit in the Garden
There are various beautiful ponds, grassland, stone railings, and zigzag bridges. The arrangement and structure of these are very charming. There is also a set of quite large relives or Fragrant Flowers located in the middle of West Park. This displays the flourishing vision of Tan Kah Kee of setting up schools as well as cultivating the talented people in the area.
Jimei Monument
A number of students visit the Kah Kee Park to enjoy the beautiful Monument to Liberation in Jimea, musing over the school master’s grace. There is an honor monument in the park emphasizing education and respecting teachers. The monument is sculpted in a large candle with carvings. All over the garden are flowers, city trees and beautiful lawns.
Turtle Garden
The Turtle Garden or Ao Yuan is located in Jimei and had been built in the year 1950. Mr. Tan’s tomb, as well as the Liberation Monument, are both located in this garden. The corridor extending from the garden’s entrance is inscribed with various carvings. There are many other stone inscriptions that can also be found throughout the garden. The monument’s foundation is surrounding by polished relief sculptures and jade carvings which show the unique style and exquisite workmanship of the Fujian carving art.
Guilai Tang
Located close to Tan Kah Kee’s former residence, Guilai Tang is a place for overseas Chinese to come together on their trips back home. The building is spread over an area of 4000 square meters. The main part of the building is in the style of a traditional palace. Guilai Yuan is located before Guilai Tang and was constructed in the year 1983. The garden also has Tan Kah Kee’s bronze statue.
Other than the attractions mentioned above, some of the other places which tourists might want to visit are the Crocodile Garden, Yangping Gulie, Dragon Boat Pond, and Jiageng Park.
- How to Get There? Take Route number 18 that goes through the Xiamen Bridge.
- Ticket Price: CNY 10
- Opening Hours: 8:00 - 20:00