Tosh, thats a really good way of explaining it - sort of correct but sort of not but still a good way to explain it.
Pure water is polarised, like a magnet, and will attract +ve charged particles such as sodium (Na2+) and will form chemical bonds with the free ions (Ionic, covalent, double covalent and Van der Waals), but again what Tosh says about having gaps in it is 'true' also as the new compounds become free to move around in the water between the water molecules and in some cases attach to the water molecules.