On Thanksgiving my group had our "holiday" party at the Hotel Intercontinental beach here in Doha. I remember my first Thanksgiving away from home - I was 19, in the Navy, and stationed on the USS Fearless in Charleston, South Carolina. I rode my bicycle into town and ordered a turkey sandwich in a diner.This time we had Lebanese food, but someone thought to ask them to put some turkey slices on a platter. I passed on the turkey. There was a jazz band and afterwards we sat on carpets and cushions while folks relaxed with a shisha pipe. I passed on the shisha too. According to my friend Nasser, seated to my right, shisha is a Turkish word meaning glass. That is because the water bowl is made from glass. The yankees here call it the "hubbly bubbly" and I think that some places it may be known as the "hookah" although that is normally associated with drugs I think. In the Middle East, shisha tobacco has dried fruit in it and has a nice aroma. I have been told variously that it is milder than regular tobacco and also that it is stronger. Anyway, if interested, I'll take you to a "shisha bar" if you come visit me.
Today it rained! In fact, we have had a couple of "rains" lately. Not a whole lot really, but it cools things off and is nice. The weather is in the 70s right now - very pleasant. Enjoy the holiday bustle. I'll have a cup of tea and watch the shisha smokers until I can get home.
1 comment:
RE: TB
They give you a clean mouthpiece here for the pipe. I'm not advocating, just clarifying. Most people think it is easier to smoke since it is cooled and has a nice aroma, but it is unfiltered and you have to suck pretty hard to keep it going I think so you get it deep into your lungs.
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