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Early Impressions of the Hookah!

I have just returned from my conference and must say that it was a wonderful experience. The formal work.... presenting of research, attending talks & poster sessions, and the searching for research products and books at the expos were all enjoyable and wonderful as is typical for such a meeting.

The comaraderie with friends infrequently seen was also a joy and blessing. Friends from across the nation were there with me and we had a helluva good time catching up on life.

The nightlife was also a delight and will be described in future essays.

Yet, the most memorable and delightful new aspect of this trip were the visits to the nargile coffee shop (the hookah shop) that became an eagerly awaited ritual each late afternoon/evening of the trip.

I believe I shall want to write several essays about the experience, including:

1. The artistry and design of the hookah.
2. The image and design of the cafe as well as its atmosphere.
3. The process and physiological effects of the smoking of the hookah.
4. The feelings and emotions experienced through indulging in the hookah.
5. The variety of different people I met at the hookah cafe.

To capture a glimpse of the overall experience, however, I have written a brief abstract about the experience below:

The hookahs I smoked were always massive beasts, standing roughly 3.5 feet tall and were beautiful works of art in metal & glass. The cafe itself exuded a captivating feel of other-worldly experiences with dim lighting, pleasantly cacophonious Middle Eastern and Indian music, and art. The process was delightfully different than smoking my normal briar pipes or smoking a cigar. Instead of pulling a puff of smoke into your mouth and then inhaling said puff, the hookah process is more organic and holistic. The bore of the mouthpiece and stem of the hookah is much wider than a briar pipe or cigar and hence you can obtain a much larger flow of air through the stem. With the hookah, you breath inward through the mouthpiece. The simple act of breathing is all you need to focus upon. The smoke itself is so smooth that you do not even notice it as you breath in (which was a surprise as it is very dense and thick), and its mental effects are initially mild but as I will talk about in the essay it grows proundly beautiful and potent. When you exhale, you notice the smoke is exceptionally dense and a much brighter white color than from the briar pipe or cigar. The feelings and emotions are beautiful in every manner you can imagine, and they too shall be a focus also of a future essay. Finally, the numerous, wonderful people I met and chatted with will also become foci.

With the above tidbits to give you a hint to writings to come, I think I shall allow myself to play for the rest of the day and recover more completely from the jet lag (read... to recover from the tiring nature of airports and the confined uncomfort of airplanes for tall, larger fellows like myself. I called my elderly father-in-law this morning, and he is up for an afternoon of discussion, drinking and pipes (and cigars... he mentioned in particular a cigar he was hungry for (the Arango Sportsman Aromatic 350)) and I think I will head out buy us a fifth of something pleasant, stop at the tobacconist and buy a few ounces of a potent, harsh leaf I enjoy and a fistful of the Arangos for my father-in-law and have a helluva good time.

PipeTobacco