The striking visual delight when you are on the other side of the border from Manipur into Myanmar is to see beautiful Buremese women with a paste on their cheeks. This is known as Thanaka paste. Thanaka is a yellowish-white cosmetic paste made from ground bark of Thanaka tree. Traditionally, the bark is ground on a stone slab called Kyauk Pyin. As Myanmar is opening up to the world, with modern times here, one can get the packaged powder form of Thanaka everywhere in Myanmar. The benefit of applying the Thanaka is multifold but foremost is for sun protection as it also gives a cooling effect to the skin.
Wiki link about Thanaka is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanaka
Our next trip to Manipur will be in August www.itnatureclub.in/manipur
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