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Over the last decade hookahs have started gaining a great deal of recognition in the U.S. A hookah bar is a business establishment where folks come with their buddies to enjoy a "hookah”. There are several Hookah bars in urban areas in the U.S. Quick History The source of hookah can be traced back to 500 years in what was then called the Subcontinent. Making its way through Iran and into Turkey it experienced an increase of popularity among Turkish upper class and began to spread even more rapidly down through Lebanon and Syria and eventually to Egypt, hence the hookah bar is heavily associated with the Middle East. Hookah bars became popular in the Middle East as the places where patrons used to socialize and smoke hookah with others. Features of Hookah Bars In the more cultural regions, the lounges usually appear like their roots more carefully, often operated by people of Arab ancestry, furnished and decorated with a Middle Eastern or Indian design. A few are simple, and may not offer other items. But some multifunctional bars offer snack foods, coffee and sodas too. A small bar typically doesn't have a liquor license and thus they don't serve alcohol. But the large bars which are in very populated areas offer wine, beer along with other cocktails. A few hookah bars try to give an environment like a night club with live bands and DJs although some tend to keep the bar close to the origin of hookah bars with belly dancers performing in the bars. Near college campuses, hookah bars tend to be more casual with a wide mix of customers, including students of course. Hookah is believed to be safer than smoking cigarettes, cigars or other things and so hookahs are gaining a lot of popularity. Also, as college years tend to be a time of new experiences, regular social interaction, and building strong connections, the hookah lounge lends itself well to college life. Cities popular for their secondary education establishments, for example Washington DC or Raleigh, NC have noticed a surge in popularity with regards to these lounges. The Mysterious Hookah Itself You'd like to learn what a hookah is? Hookah was designed by a Persian physician in the late 1500’s. It was called as a “huqqa”. This name has stayed with this device since then, however, as this device spread around the world it gained several other names like hubble-bubble and nargile. The first hookah was made from coconut shells and it was nothing like the hookahs that are manufactured in the present day, but the purpose of that hookah was same of purifying smoke by passing it through water. A simple hookah has the following four components: 1. Bowl - the tobacco is placed here. 2. Body - the smoke leaves the body and reaches the water basin. 3. Water Basin - keeps the water, where smoke is passed through to be cooled and purified. Purified smoke remains in the chamber over the water until it is inhaled through the hose. 4. Hose - after the purified smoke reaches the chamber, the smoker takes a puff deeply through the hose connected into the water basin. The hose can be up to many meters long. Thick, cool and fragrant smoke comes out of the hookah. A senior customer of a well known hookah establishment in Turkey once said: “The thing isn't what you put in the pipe, but who is with you while you’re smoking. The idea is enjoy. All kinds of people, old, young and fascinating come to bars like this one. So long as there is a desire for company and friendship, as long as people want to stop and think, you will have hookah bars.” Hookah Joe specializes in writing about hookahs. You can see his work at Hookah Detective., where he provides information on more topics, like hookah bars and lounges.
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