Dizi...
On the weekend I bought myself a dizi (笛子), a traditional Chinese bamboo flute. I thought that it might be good to give me something to do in my spare time, and at the same time learn a Chinese instrument. It was quite cheap actually, and I got a book (in Chinese) that teaches you how to play and gives a lot of simple melodies. The Chinese system of music notation is quite different from in the West. Instead of the notes (A, B, C, D, etc) they have numbers -1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7- to represent the different notes, and dots above or below the notes to indicate the octave. The numbers are written all on one line, with dashes and lines to represent the length of time that you hold each note. Now I just have to learn how to play more than three notes, and how to get the bamboo membrane attached to the second hole.
If you want to hear what it sounds like, here's a few free sample songs, and here's some info if you want to learn how to play.