Thailand is marking the 86th birthday of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, amid a truce after days of violent demonstrations in the capital Bangkok.
People have been cleaning the streets in the capital ahead of festivities, while local media report hundreds are lining the streets near one of the king's palaces.
There were violent clashes earlier in the week between police and protesters.
The demonstrators were demanding that the current government resign.
On Wednesday, some protesters, along with government forces, have been cleaning the area around the Democracy Monument in Bangkok, where celebrations for the king's birthday are expected to be held.
Thousands of people had headed to the town of Hua Hin, near the king's Klai Kangwon palace, in the hope of seeing him, the Bangkok Post reports.
Special bus and train services had been laid on by the transport ministry to bring people to the town, the paper says.
The kings traditionally delivers a speech to the nation on his birthday, and it will be scrutinised to see if he makes any reference to the political crisis.
Thailand's troubles Sept 2006: Army overthrows government of Thaksin Shinawatra, rewrites constitution Dec 2007: Pro-Thaksin People Power Party wins most votes in election Aug 2008: Mr Thaksin flees into self-imposed exile before end of corruption trial Dec 2008: Mass yellow-shirt protests paralyse Bangkok; Constitutional Court bans People Power Party; Abhisit Vejjajiva comes to power Mar-May 2010: Thousands of pro-Thaksin red shirts occupy parts of Bangkok; eventually cleared by army; dozens killed July 2011: Yingluck Shinawatra leads Pheu Thai party to general election win Nov 2013: Anti-government protesters begin street demonstrations
Pause in unrest
The current wave of protests began in Bangkok on 24 November relatively peacefully, but things took a violent turn over the weekend and on Monday.
Protesters tried to topple police barricades and storm the prime minister's office, Government House. Clashes broke as police used tear gas and water cannon to repel them.
The situation calmed down on Tuesday after security forces stepped back from protesters.
Some anti-government protesters headed to the police headquarters in Bangkok on Wednesday. A few hundred of the protesters were allowed inside the compound by the police and then withdrew.
The current calm feels like a pause and not an ending to the protests, the BBC's Jonah Fisher in Bangkok reports.
'After the king's birthday, we will start fighting again until we achieve our goal,' former deputy prime minister and protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban told AFP on Tuesday.
The protesters want the current government under Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to step down and be replaced by an unelected 'People's Council'.
They allege that her government is controlled by her brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who is in self-imposed exile after he was overthrown in a military army coup in 2006 and convicted of corruption.
At least four people have died since Saturday, in what has been Thailand's worst political turmoil since the 2010 rallies that ended in violence.
But a senior Thai military official appeared optimistic.
'Everyone agreed that the military forces will not take a leading role in this situation and there will be no coup, as we believe the tension is easing and everything will be back to normal soon,' navy chief, Admiral Narong Pipathanasai, told media on Wednesday.
Posted by Unknown on Wednesday, December 4, 2013 - Rating: 4.5
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