Some Help For A Noobie

[sdemartino]

Hey all,

So, I've been smoking hookah on occasion for a few years and finally invested in one of my own a couple months ago. I've smoked it many times with varying degrees of success, mostly with Romman and Al Waha shishas. I've never been taught how to do things the "right way", so I figured I'd throw out a few general questions and see if I could get some feedback from more experienced hookah smokers. Here goes:

1) I've ordered some natural coals recently becuase i heard they're the way to go. What's the best way to configure the coals on the foil?

2) What are some teqniques for poking holes in the foil?

3) What's the proper way to pack the shisha for the best smoke?

4) I think that the stem I got is too short for the base I'm using. I have a genie-style base (narrow neck that expands into a fat bottom, like your typical vase), and the stem barely decends past the "neck" of the base. So, when I add water, I have to add so much that the smoke only has a chance to collect in the small neck part of the base, rather than part of the larger chamber. Is this normal?

5) Anyone know of any good places in the Boston area to get premium shisha like Tangiers or Starbuzz? The best I've been able to find around here is Romman. I've ordered some tangiers online but I'd really like to have a close place where i could smell before I buy. I'd even check out good places in other parts of Massachusetts or Rhode Island.

That's all I can think of for now...any and all help would be greatly appreciated!!!

[RayVer]

your first 3 questions can be answered by doing a search. those questions have been asked many many times.

sometimes this is the case with some hookahs... just trying putting the water level no less than 1/2inch above the stem tip.

[bkag]

1-3 have some really good explanations on here (been stalking around for a month or so )

4. Its probably fine, as long as the water doesn't bubble up into the stem, therefore into the hose then your pretty much good to go, though having a tiny space for the smoke may reduce the quality, with my mya i have to have the water just where the vase starts to taper off. You could always replace your downtube with a longer one.

5. No Idea