I’ve known about Gazoza ever since I’ve been aware of my existence and have been able to store memories. I was growing older, but still didn't stop drinking and enjoying this goldish, bubbling liquid each time I’m visiting. As I (try to) go to Macedonia at least once a year, the bond between Gazoza and everything that this country meant to me only grew stronger in my associative array. Each time I go to Macedonia, I somehow find myself drinking nothing but Gazoza (and, since I started going out to clubs and bars, a few beers here and there, which is nothing out of the ordinary). I rarely drink water, or not at all. When I head back home, I always bring supplies with me (usually several to ten big bottles). All my Macedonian friends know what to bring if they’re visiting me in Belgrade, or even if they’re just passing by.
You see, Gazoza is one of the cheapest, if not the cheapest soda you can get in Macedonia. A 1,5l bottle will cost you about 0.60 – 0.80 € and no one really drinks is it since it’s considered a low-class, why-drink-this-when- you- can-have-a-coke-for-not-that-higher-price drink. Naturally, the price says a lot about the quality. Gazoza is essentially a pear-based soda, but the taste is so sugary and obviously purely chemical and industrial that one would have to be a real gustation professional to be able to trace back the pear. Some say it tastes like a fruity bubble gum.
The point is, I love it. We all know that tastes and smells, among other stimuli, have the ability to set off a chain of (suppressed) memories, once our sensors are exposed to them. Drinking Gazoza takes me back to my early childhood summers that I used to spend in the garden of the house of my grandparents in Veles, or to the relaxed days in an apartment of my aunt in Skopje. It brings back memories from that time - the people, certain states of mind, feelings, and, generally, the events that took place. There are plenty of them and most of them are beautiful.
To stress out the intensity of the emotions I cherish for this drink, I will wrap up with a short description of a dream I had about two years ago, including it. In the dream, I find myself hearing that the factory in Prilep is shutting down and that Gazoza will no longer be produced. The next moment I am already awake, though still semiconscious, yet with a plan well worked out and a strong decision to set out on a road trip through Macedonia and buy every last bottle. Now, this dream can naturally be interpreted in numerous ways and directions, but still, it’s rather weird, don’t you think?
