HookahCulture

It's certainly a delicate balance and it depends on the kind of bowl you are using. Check out my MySpace for some pics. Thanks to Zed for the successful common method, while I give a good one for the standard brown bowl and a toothpick.

Hookahs are EXEMPT from the Drug Paraphernalia Statute under U.S. CODE TITLE 21, CHAPTER 13, SUBCHAPTER I, Part D, §863.f. Oh yeah and as above, have the cops swab it for drugs. Last time I heard, federal law overrides all others. TELL THEM TO STICK IT AND SUE THEM! Make as big a deal as you can with this. Don't forget to contact the school paper! It's the best avenue for exposing and embarrassing university antagonists with the truth. I'd be willing to bet they'll settle out of court.

Just because I posted a NEGATIVE review. hrumph. Well I'm not gonna split hairs over it, the past is the past.

Milk hookahs are just nasty. Just manage your coals and holes.

WOW! What a topic. My first hookah was in 1994. I was at university and went to a small party at a friend of a friend's, and they had a shisha. It was a condo where 2 brothers lived - they were American, but they spent their teen years in Riyadh since their parents were working with the gov't under an oil company contract. (They told me stories about beheadings in the public square -- expect to lose your head for smuggling drugs into Saudi!!) The brothers were white and spoke perfect American english, but between eachother they spoke fluent colloquial arabic. A shisha was in the room -- It was a nice tall one about 30 inches, with 2 hoses. One of my friends went to the fridge and broke out what I remember now as what must have been a Nakhla apple jar. I know it was apple cuz that's what he told me, and I remember that the Nakhla had the screw-on lids back then. I also remember that the moassel was a sort of long cut tobacco compared to what we see today. Awesome smoke but I didn't get the strong sense of apple. Definitely not the Al Qemah type. So there you have it!

Double hose is the best --- Plug it for single use, but you can still have a friend.

QUOTE (MechAnt @ Oct 10 2007, 07:12 AM) HCulture, are they manufactured that way or they just stuck together in the packaging? Both actually! In the package there's a stack of rounds, and each foil circle is separated by a thin piece of paper. Take out a foil circle and you'll find that it's 2 sheets. Every circle is like that. They're VERY thin sheets! Be careful, they're fragile so don't get to aggressive with wrapping on the bowl or with the hole poker. Nour makes them but I have a different brand, light blue box all in arabic.

I'm one of those people that doesn't notice a buzz....

Well you spend as much as you want really! Once you have the setup you want, it just comes down to coals and flavors. I myself don't smoke every day and only have a few favorite flavors I keep. A recommended buy is a pack of hookah foils, a metal screen and a bag of mouthtips for your friends. Many things you buy will last a long time, and a even a 5 dollar bag of finger coals will last a good while even if you smoke often. For me I spend about $20 every few months! Really, once you narrow down your favorite flavors, it's not too expensive. A word about the hookah foils --- each round is TWO foils stuck together! Carefully separate them between thumb and forefinger near the edges.

I bought perhaps the smallest thing they offer last year.... The mouthpiece keychain! Awesome for the lounges. Anyway it was the only thing I've ever ordered from Caravansarai, as all my hookah needs are solved at local shops, but Ali was very nice over the phone and excited to have my business. Tops for service and speed of shipping. DEFINITELY a recommended retailer, the best-kept secret on the net, check out those prices!

QUOTE (SafeSearchOff @ Oct 10 2007, 01:51 AM) My local loung uses HookahHookah shisha. and they say it with pride. HH is overpriced candy crap. And don't EVEN get me started on their ethics.

QUOTE (MechAnt @ Oct 10 2007, 03:32 AM) That's Eric, Tangiers, packing it himself. Its not a phunnel either, its a standard bowl but tangiers style. Ah OK.... Still, I would've MADE a hole through the moassel to the holes on the bottom, maybe about a dime wide, and still made the donut of holes in the foil. (And packed it only half full.)

QUOTE (cymptom @ Oct 7 2007, 11:52 PM) Why is the tobacco so dry before you stirred it? Mine has never looked anything like that... Cuz the moisture settles toward the bottom in the container.

Blowing into the inverted bowl will cause some moassel to stick to the foil and in turn be BURNED. Just fill it a few mm below the rim. Looks like that bowl is WAY overpacked. As for the foil, try to avoid sag. Have it nice n tight across the rim. I don't think you're supposed to block the hole with moassel? I would place holes as a donut AROUND the bowl hole by a half inch. The packing and hole pattern is reminiscent of a hookah lounge around here. Even though they're middle eastern, I wouldn't say this is a correct method. If you hear a sizzle when you place the coals, you already know the moassel is too close to the foil! Also, moassel "fluffs" upwards during the smoke - even though you might pack it below the rim, you'll still end up with some stuck to the foil. In these photos I'm willing to bet that the foil swells like the old Jiffy-Pop popcorn on the stove! I think you'll get much more favorable results using half the amount of moassel. As for images, use imageshack.us --- reliable for bandwidth and fast loading time. I've got HSI and those pics are taking AGES to load! Looks like imageigloo is for the birds.

I will say for the flavors I want, Nakhla doesn't hold up, but I'm sure for the traditional double apple that's what you want! I myself keep tot he fruit flavors and the occasional Zaghloul mix. I've had the double apple occasionally (not in MY hookah)... Maybe there's another thread for this but.... Best double apple? Are they ALL heavy anise or are there some with a hint of apple?

Absolutely. If they ask why you want to know, odds are they have something to hide. They should be proud to tell you since they believe it to be good enough to serve. However I know one place that serves Nakhla (a sub-par brand) and they're fine with it as they're traditional Egyptians.

I'm planning to do some remixes that y'all will be spinning. More industrial flavor though. But I love the lounge trance and breakbeats!

The best hookah lounge here uses Mahmoon hookahs. They're built tough from a legendary manufacturer and made for frequent use. Keep em clean and they'll take care of you! Get some nice washable hoses or flavor-coded other ones. Well either way, flavor code them with colored electrical tape.

I've got a camping propane cannister, and use a brazing tip. Works great for finger coals! Give em a turn and do the other side. Also works for uncooperative quick-lights. But yeah, blow on them and then let the coals mellow for a few minutes before tossing them on. Give the impurities a chance to burn away after you've gotten rid of all black on the surface.

Yeah that looks like a good one... Make sure you have all your grommets and everything. IMO when you buy your first hookah you should have everything you need to start smoking 15 mins out of the box!

What counts is if they last long and light easily. A lot of quick-lights are crap! Very few brands are any good. Please post a review after you receive them......

QUOTE (poopooshaboo @ Oct 8 2007, 05:29 AM) What about the AF Healthy Hose? Can't beat $2.95 for a hose. You get what you pay for! Functional but plastic crap. Your friends will mock you. "Did you win this hose from Skeeball at the pizza parlor?" And NO I never had that hose. Just look at it though!

I like the Jordanian washable hose with the wooden handle. However I punctured it with the futon leg somehow and I think I'll get a Nammor hose soon. Washable hoses are a plus!!!

Can I use some of your foil patterns on my site? I promise to give credits. Great ones for the n00bz. I'm revamping the site. Please message me. Thanks!

I'm always a fan of the taller hookah!