Shisha is tobacco leaves mixed with molasses and almost any kind of flavor ranging from strawberry to coffee. At my house on Campus Ave I smoke shisha almost every day.

First of all, I’ll try to explain how a hookah works.

A standard hookah has at least five components. The first is the base, where the water is held (water? – I’ll get to that in a minute). Next is the stem, the hose, the bowl/head, and finally, the seals/grommets. An optional component for a hookah is a coal plate, which serves a dual purpose of catching any coals that might slip off the bowl and also adds a distinct and stylish look to a hookah.

The base is generally a glass jar that is shaped in a cylinder and is hollowed out and filled with water.

The stem is a narrow cylinder shaped piece of metal or bronze with a grommet underneath (for an airtight seal) that fits directly on top of the base, with the bottom part submerged into the water line about an inch (an inch or so is about the perfect level for optimal smoke). The stem also has at least one connector for a hose and a valve that unscrews in order to let smoke out of the base.

The hose is a slender tube with either a plastic, metal, or wooden mouthpiece at one end, while the other end has a grommet. The end with the grommet is what is attached to the stem. A grommet is not necessary, but is optimal for an airtight seal and better smoking. The mouthpiece of the hose is what you actually smoke from.

The bowl is a container shaped out of clay or marble that houses the delicious tobacco (shisha). A grommet is attached to the bottom of the bowl and the top of the stem for yes, an airtight seal.

The grommets of a hookah are rubber rings that clamp tightly onto the components they are used with.

The coal plate is a metal disc that fits between the bowl and the stem that catches any coals that might fall off the top of the bowl. One of these is necessary if you don’t want to be especially careful with your hookah or if you are smoking in a room with carpeting.

These components complete a standard hookah that should look similar to this -

Now for the accessories that you must periodically purchase.

Tobacco – I buy my shisha from either the Hookah Shack on Lincoln Way or from a Middle Eastern grocery store called Pammel Grocery on Colorado Ave. While the Shack sells a more expensive, better brand of shisha, I usually stick to the tobacco at Pammel which costs about eight dollars vs. the Shack’s twenty. I can’t remember how much each pack of shisha weighs, but it lasts me at least two weeks (compare that to a couple of packs of cigarettes which usually lasts a smoker a considerably less time).

Tin foil – A necessary accessory that is snugly fit onto the top of the bowl after the tobacco is in place. With a toothpick, you poke several (a lot) of tiny holes into the top of the foil before smoking. You can buy a metal piece that fits on top of the bowl with premade holes, but from personal experience, I recommend just using foil.

Coals – Ah, yes. The coals. You can also buy these from either the Shack or Pammel, and they average about eight to fifteen dollars depending on the type that best fits your needs. The two main types are quick-igniting and slow burning. The quick-igniting type is more expensive while the slow burning are usually cheaper. I buy the slow burning coals and place them on my stove and turn the burner on to high until they are cherry red. Once my hookah is in place and my coals are ready, I use tongs and a pan to transfer the coals to the top of my bowl, and smoking can begin!

Now this may seem like a very complicated way to smoke tobacco, but it has overwhelmingly large advantages to all other types of tobacco. Because the smoke generated from the heating (not burning) of the shisha travels down the stem into the base, it is cooled and filtered by the water before traveling through the hose. This makes for especially smooth and wonderful tasting smoke. Another advantage is that smoking sessions can go on for over an hour with periodic coal tending to ensure proper heating of the tobacco.

But my favorite part of smoking out of a hookah is the communal feeling that you get when you are simply having a good time with a few friends. Plus, a hookah just looks cool.

Wow, it’s getting late and this has been an extremely long first post, but I guess it’s good to hit the ground running.