Diwali - Festival of lights

Diwali - the festival of lights, is of course India's biggest festival.  But it is celebrated in many countries.  Though Indonesia is a Muslim-dominated country, Diwali is celebrated on Bali island where most of the population is of Indian descent.  In Fiji, this day is a national holiday, as there are many Hindus living in this Oceania country.  It's a national holiday day in Mauritius and Malaysia too. Singapore and Sri Lanka also celebrate Diwali with great enthusiasm.

Diwali celebrations are catching up in the western world too.  Canada issued many stamps for the Diwali festival.  In the USA, since 2021 it is a federal holiday.  

Here is a greeting to everyone on this wonderful occasion.  Fairy lights are set up and firecrackers are burst.  It is an occasion that one must witness at least once in their lifetime.

Below are some of the stamps issued on the Diwali theme from my collection,

Modica Chocolate Industry - QR code Italy stamp

 Modica Chocolate Industry - QR code stamp

Every stamp tells a story and they are issued for a reason.  Same way, the below stamp also tells a sweet story of the Italian Modica PGI Chocolates.  It was issued on 15th October 2020 by the Italian post.  The value of the stamp is 'B' which is equal to € 1.10.

What makes Modica Chocolate special? Modica Chocolate is mainly made with cocoa butter, naturally present in cocoa beans and sugar mixed in a cold-working process(ingredients are never heated above 45 C). The cold-working process keeps sugar crystals whole in the chocolate bar.  All the beneficial properties of cocoa are kept intact.

Modica chocolate is the first and only PGI chocolate, a mark of origin and protection of typical European Community products.

The stamp has many elements like the antique clock tower of  Modica adjacent to the castle (constructed around 1725 and needs manual winding in an old-fashioned way, but still working), an artisan preparing chocolate, cocoa beans, and Modica chocolate bars. On the top left the trademark of the Protected Geographical Indication and “Cioccolato di Modica”.  But the one that attracted me most is the QR code at the right side top.  Usually, the QR codes take us to the postal website, But my intuition told me to scan the QR code, and surprisingly it took me to the below Youtube site, 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awa_uvX57TE

The video shows how Modica chocolate has been made.  I am lucky to get this stamp on the cover as well as in mint condition for my Odd and unusual stamps collection.  

Instagram post: https://www.instagram.com/p/CkBASEjjw5V/