Hookah Smoking Between Tradition And Modernism

Hookah smoking is an old Middle-Eastern and Asian tradition that has been preserved and passed from one generation to another, being recently adopted by many different societies and cultures of the world. In present, hookah smoking is a very common practice in the United States and in various other Western countries, increasingly larger numbers of people being attracted by this more than 300 year-old custom. While a few decades ago hookah smoking was a rare and little known custom in the United States (being practiced mostly by immigrants and the upper classes of society), nowadays it is extremely popular among the entire American population.

The increasing popularity of hookah smoking has been influenced by multiple factors. First of all, hookah smoking is regarded as a mystical and intriguing custom that has the power to immerse the smoker into states of beatitude, pleasure and relaxation, thanks to the wonderful aromas released by the traditional tobacco blends. Furthermore, hookah smoking is renowned to be a much healthier alternative to regular cigarettes, allowing smokers to enjoy fine tobacco flavors without putting their health at risk. These traits have transformed hookah smoking into a real trend in the U.S., followed especially by the young and middle-age people, but also by the elderly.

Hookah smoking refers to smoking “shisha” (term that generally describes the traditional tobacco combinations smoked by hookah enthusiasts) through a hookah pipe (an oriental tobacco pipe with a flexible tube attached to a recipient where the smoke is cooled by passing through water; also known as shisha, narghile, water pipe or hubble-bubble). The traditional tobacco blends smoked through hookah pipes mostly consist of molasses, tobacco and fruit. Shisha is usually a wet tobacco mixture, and due to this fact it is smoked using a hookah charcoal.

Hookah tobacco can be purchased under many forms, combinations and flavors, today’s extensive and varied offer satisfying all possible tastes and desires. Some of the most popular hookah tobacco aromatic packages available for purchase are: Jamaican Rum, Kiwi, Orange, Green Apple, Grape, Cherry, Hazelnut, Menthol, Cherry, Margarita, Pineapple, Mango, Vanilla, Honey, Pina Colada, Butterscotch, Rose, Chocolate, Cola and Banana. These flavors can be purchased separately or in three, five, ten mixed packages. Furthermore, hookah enthusiasts who wish to enjoy great flavors without inhaling tobacco smoke can opt for the “Premium Herbal Shisha Pack”. Herbal shisha is a mixture of various herbal ingredients that contain no tobacco, nicotine or tar. The “Premium Herbal Shisha Pack is also non-addictive, rendering this product the best choice for occasional hookah smokers.

Hookah pipes come in many different shapes and sizes, ranging from large hookah pipes (generally purchased by hookah bar owners) to small hookah pipes (cheaper and easy to maintain), rotating hookah pipes and multiple hose hookahs. There are hundreds of hookah pipes designs, each individual piece having distinctive decorative or functional features. In order to choose the most appropriate hookah pipe model, one should carefully analyze certain aspects such as the price, number of hoses, durability, the required level of maintenance, as well as the originality of the design and the overall aspect of the piece.

Apart from an appropriate hookah pipe and fine hookah tobacco, one should also purchase high-quality accessories in order to get the most out of hookah smoking. Hookah accessories such as rubber grommets, plastic hookah tobacco filters, hose caps, mouthpieces, charcoal screens, hookah stoppers, charcoal tongs, charcoal burners, charcoal trays and special cleaning brushes are only few of the things that need to be properly maintained or regularly replaced in order to keep the hookah pipe in good condition. Hookah smoking also requires a good supply of hookah charcoal, a special type of charcoal that lights up very fast and lasts for up to an hour.

Unlike a few years ago, nowadays there are various places from where you can purchase high-quality hookah pipes, accessories, original tobacco and other hookah supplies. Hookah enthusiasts can get their desired hookah supplies from specialized stores, or better yet, from online stores, thus being able to save time and effort. For the fact that they provide hookah lovers with a wide range of high-quality specific products for affordable prices, hookah online stores have achieved a lot of exposure in the last few years, drawing increasingly larger number of customers and being regarded as the best alternative to regular shops.

By: Groshan Fabiola