Kong Zhu

Kong Zhu (literally 'hollow bamboo') is known in the West as the Chinese yo-yo. Alice had been wanting to learn to play for some time when she finally met a group of women that practice outside the old city walls. They helped her find a kong zhu and showed her some basic techniques to get started. There are a couple different kinds of kong zhu - one is symmetrical (pictured above) and the other is more like a spinning top that makes a whirring sound when it gets up to speed.