Fiddling around with a violin...
My ex-wife wanted to get her niece interested in music, so she bought her a cheap violin and paid for lessons. I contributed a music book and a folding music stand. The whole episode only lasted a few weeks before everyone realized she had no musical talent. The lessons stopped and violin was put to the side. At the beginning of this musical venture, my ex bought herself a cello thinking there would be a musical duet in the making. It was a really cheap one... looked real, but the tuning pegs wouldn't stay tight. I tried some liquid specifically designed to make the pegs hold... failure.Both instruments came under my roof and were stored in a closet.
When I got around to preparing my house for sale, I had to unload these instruments. Before that, I thought I'd give them a try. I'm left-handed and they were right handed. Shouldn't be a problem... The violin was horrible. I couldn't get a clear tone from it... that's probably why my niece lost interest. It created scratchy tones that made my neighbor's dog howl!
Okay.. back in the case you go.
The cello was unplayable. My daughter listed both instruments on Craigslist and away they went.
There was an Asian market near me that sold clothing, beauty aids, books and medicines. The TV in the front was always playing a video of the 12 girls band. They are a musical group playing Western music with traditional Chinese instruments. The 2-string Chinese fiddle called Erhu caught my attention. On my travels to China 10 years ago, I visited a music store to get to see an Erhu, close up. With the rate of exchange, about $100US could get a student instrument, but I'd have to bring it back through the airport and most likely have to check it as baggage. I found an online seller based in the US who could ship to my door, but a few YouTube videos revealed, the sound they make in a beginner's hands to be 10 times worse than than a violin.
Currently, I've got a collection of guitars I don't play and think if I purchased an ERHU, there would be a 99% chance it would be in a case brought out only on holidays to show friends and family.