Chinese Cultural Garden — Attraction in San Jose

After living in San Jose for years, we recently discovered quite by accident the existence of this park and the Chinese Cultural Garden within it. We thought it would be appropriate to visit on the occasion of Double Ten Day, commemorating the chain of events that began on 10 October 1911 leading to the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC), ending more than 2,000 years of imperial rule.

The main entrance from McKee Road has been largely taken over by one or more individuals who seem to be running some kind of low-end bicycle repair business, with several sketchy characters sitting next to clusters of old bikes. We decided to move our car from McKee to the parking lot off Educational Park Drive that is shared with a public library branch. The presence of people working on old cars there didn't make us feel all that more comfortable than we were on McKee but we decided to take a chance and park there anyway.

I wanted to use the men's room in the park but the entrance was blocked by an unkempt fellow wearing only a pair of old shorts and smoking away, with his radio blasting from within the restroom, so we walked to the library for that purpose instead.

This theme continued throughout the park, with most of the benches occupied by people who looked to be in pretty bad shape sleeping there.

The park itself is quite beautiful, with some small lakes and groups of beautiful Canadian geese and ducks, though many parts of it have sadly fallen into disrepair, as others have reported.

This was the case for the Chinese Cultural Garden, which features a large traditional Chinese gate, a "plum pavilion" overlooking a small lake, an imposing statue of the Chinese sage Confucius, a memorial hall dedicated to ROC founding father Sun Yat-sen and a memorial pavilion dedicated to the first ROC president, Chiang Kai-shek.

The memorial hall is closed, surrounded by metal barriers. The memorial pavilion, including the bust of Chiang Kai-shek, has been defaced by various graffiti, as illustrated in the attached photos. It was sad to see the disrepair into which these environs have fallen.

I'm nonetheless giving the Park and the Garden five stars, as it's still a beautiful place worth visiting. It's not their fault that they've been allowed to fall into disrepair. We hope that someday soon, the situation will be remedied by people who care...

Inside Overfelt Gardens is an American oriental tribute to certain famous Chinese: Confucius, Dr Sun Yat Sen and Chang Kai Shek. Why these 3 were chosen is unknown and no written explanations exist, so just Google search their names to know why they are famous. The walk through integrates the Asian monuments and sculptures with a regular American park full of various trees, plants and grass. Some geese were floating on a large pond that looks like it is shrinking from lack of water. An underground well and generator pump should maybe replenish it since rainfall is rare in sunny California. Sporadic spots with benches and picnic table structures could be useful for families walking here. But there is a sign banning many sporty activities. San Jose has this as a peaceful family park with a nearby modern library. While walking reflect on the peace of cultivated paths along natural wild... 'Roads were made for journeys, not...

The Chinese Cultural Garden has great cultural value, featuring traditional-style architecture, a ceremonial archway, and statues of Confucius and Chiang Kai-shek. Unfortunately, it seems the garden has been neglected over time.

When I visited on a weekday afternoon, Zhongshan Hall was closed, and the lake water smelled bad and was covered in algae. Some areas also had graffiti, which made the space feel less cared for. 🧱💧

That said, the park wasn’t completely empty—some local residents were exercising, and a few students were sitting by the lake playing on their phones after school. 🧍‍♂️📱

It’s a shame, because the garden has potential to be a peaceful and culturally meaningful spot. With better maintenance, it could really...