Bubbling and Refreshing

There's water, and there's... soda water. Soda water is my favorite soft drink, especially in summer.. It is made of water to which carbon dioxide gas ( Co2) is added under pressure. It goes very well with wine creating a sparkling, refreshing drink.

They say it upsets the stomach, causes digestion discomfort. Quite the reverse,  it soothes the stomach, and eases discomfort..  As far as I know no one in my family ( all soda drinkers), has had anything to do with indigestion or stomach problems.
Soda water is also  'accused' of weakening the bones; no real evidence in this respect either.

I'm used to drinking it from an early age. In my childhood days, soda water was produced in a small factory where special glass bottles got filled with water and Co2, and then sold to customers. To buy a new bottle (named syphon), one had to return the empty one.

syphon*

 The next stage in the 'evolution', of this carbonated beverage, was home- made soda , the best kind of soda - as one can make it as strong or as weak as one wishes.

At first, the device for soda making  at home was the sypholux - a metalic, opaque, silver colored item (covering a glass inner bottle) which came with a plastic cartridge holder. To operate it one had to buy a package of replaceable Co2. cartridges. The more cartridges used, the stronger the soda. Usually three (3) cartridges were the optimal number for a fairly strong soda.

(The grey-red sypholux was a popular  wedding gift in those days, and subject to a lot of jokes , as the newly wed couples used to get more than two or three of them ).

bottle, head, cartridge, cartridge holder*

inserted cartridge holder *

The sypholux and cartridges got replaced after a while by the Soda Stream  company's device - a reusable bottle and a replaceable carbonating cylinder.
I wasn't happy with that method - too awkward and expensive for me.

soda stream kit*

Nowadays, I usually buy ready made soda water bottles /cans at the supermarket or kiosks. The bottles come in two sizes: family bottles and smaller personal bottles. It's important to read the label on the bottle before buying, as there are sometimes additions like sodium ,for example, supposed to give the soda  better taste.


* web pictures

Small and Speedy

Lately, I keep  noticing  a tiny ambulance on my street. That is something new to me. I know our MDA emergency and rescue service, makes use of  full size ambulances, and motorcycles .
I've never seen a mini-ambulance like the one on my street. It looks like a curiosity toy (and indeed attracts kids), until you approach it and see it's serious.

the mini seen from an upper floor

I've found out that our MDA (Magen David Adom)  launched an entire fleet of these rather cute vehicles some two years ago. The minis are supposed to speed up response time, in hard to reach places (i.e. in major cities which have many narrow streets and alleyways).

front of the mini ambulance

The vehicle is electrical with two front seats, and equipped with first aid kits, and sirens. The predominant color is strong yellow which helps with its visibility.  As I understand, these mini ambulances are allocated to volunteers who've been trained as paramedics. 

back of the mini ambulance

It's good to know we have a paramedic volunteer on our street. However, I hope we never need him. By saying that I mean not to be an emergency case, and also not to need neighbors in emergency; they're not always there for us.

side of  the mini ambulance

I was once very frustrated by a  neighbor,pharmacist by profession.. I urgently needed a solution for my mother, and the above pharmacist refused to prepare it ;  the basis for his refusal was  a stupid formality. It was the only solution (prescription of an ear doctor) that could ease the terrible itching in my 80 year old mother's deaf ear. Luckily, I had no difficulty finding an other pharmacist in town, willing to prepare the solution, but it took some time and effort.

Magnets

Magnets have become very popular in healing therapy (relief of low back pain). I have no experience with that sort of magnets. I like to buy  magnets as decorations for my fridge door and as small gifts for others. These items have full or partial magnetic back adhesive.

fridge door (upper part)

I buy them as mementos on almost every trip. They don't take up much place in the suitcase and are quite affordable. Besides, they can last forever on the fridge door.

Needless to say, these souvenirs remind me of some lovely places, and give me much pleasure.

The only thing against them is that it might cause clutter on the fridge door; that's mainly true, Imaho, with household chore 'reminders' which we sometimes forget to take  off. 
(Well for reminders and calendar, I have a separate spot, a cork plate on the wall of my computer corner). 

Here are some of my favorite fridge magnets: 

                              babushkas (Moscow)                                  

the Kremlin (Moscow)

amber heart (Moscow)

boat (Heraklion - Crete)

ceramic coaster (Romania)

insignia (Vaduz-Lichtenstein)

Victor statue (Belgrade- Beograd)

face (indian booth - Expo fair)

landmarks (Prague - Praha)

sheep

laminated birthday card

landmarks; matchbox (Sofia)

Remarks:

'Face' and 'Heart' can be worn as pendants. Face pendant ( metal), is more suitable for men. The Belgrade item (featuring the Victor monument facing the confluence of two rivers) can be turned into a brooch.

Amber made items are very popular on Russia markets.  I own a beautiful russian amber necklace given to me as a birthday gift many years ago; time doesn't rob it of its beauty.

I've recently seen magnets in the form of the corona virus. I won't buy that one.