What's with the face paint?

Several of you have asked about the golden face paint you've seen in these photos. It's called Thanaka that comes from the bark of the tanaka tree which is widely grown in upper Myanmar. Myanmar women (as well as girls and young boys) wear it to protect their skin from the sun and as a moisturizer and to keep skin young looking. You make a watery paste by rubbing a piece of the bark in a circular motion over a special smooth stone. It looks like this:It clearly works since women here have gorgeous skin well into old age.