Crafts

The sideways ovals are a chain stitch. A line with one cross-hatch is a single crochet, two cross-hatches is a double crochet. X means skip the stitch below and crochet in the next stitch.

This kind of pattern is the modern way to show crochet instructions, and it is vastly better than the old way. If your local yarn store has any books on learning to crochet, pick one up as it will show you what you need.

That oval in the center is where you start. You'll want to chain four or five, then join the chain with a slip stitch, and proceed to make all those double crochets into the hole. It will give you a VERY round shape to start with.

You might also want to go to Ravelry for more help. It's possible someone there will have this pattern with some English instructions.

Good luck. It's an adorable hat.