HIGH TIMES NEAR RITTENHOUSE SQUARE AS HEAD SHOP OPENS AT 18th & CHESTNUT STREETS

For weeks I was wondering what was going to go into the small space where Fabulous Stationery was located at 102 S 18th St.
Within the time of a month upscale Rittenhouse Square has proven to be a diverse neighborhood by welcoming both a Barney’s Co-Op and a Head Shop. I guess the Hookah and 420 business haven’t been affected by the economy (or cancer), as the store marked Starbuzz seems to be looking to do a brisk business at their store which is sparsely populated with much else besides rolling papers, bongs, hookahs, pipes and cigars; not with the usual stuff found in a smoke shop like magazines, newspapers and gifts.
Hookahs (which is defined as a double bong) are most popular with college students and young adults, who may be underage and thus unable to purchase cigarettes. Hookah’s are just as popular as smoking out of a bong…as a pipe is. Perhaps wanting to capitalize on the popularity of Byblos, a Mediterranean restaurant down the street who serves hookah, or maybe the kids from the local colleges who may partake in the hobby, Starbuzz will become the one stop shopping for all your smoking needs.
SAFETY WARNING: Many people believe that smoking hookah (a water pipe popular in many countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East) is a safe alternative to smoking cigarettes because flavored tobacco smoke is cooled as it passes through a reservoir of water. What could be wrong about the natural filtering effects of pure H2O, right? Think again. Studies have proven that smoking hookah delivers more tar, carbon monoxide, and nicotine to your body than smoking a single cigarette. Just ask the researchers over at the American Cancer Society, and they’ll tell you that men who smoked hookah were FIVE times more likely to develop lung cancer than non-smokers!