Clean streets replete with national flags, major road intersections adorned with ornate potted plants, Beijing is in gala attire early Thursday for the massive celebration commemorating the 60th founding anniversary of the People's Republic of China.

The event will showcase how the country explores the road of building socialism with Chinese characteristic in the past decades, and what great achievements it has attained.

Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to gather on Tian'anmen Square and along Chang'an Avenue in central Beijing for hours to experience the grandiose celebration that will boost their national pride.

Many people may have an early rise Thursday morning to get prepared to watch the much-anticipated military and civilian parade either alongside the parade route or on TV.

With grandiose military parade and massive pageant only hours away, Tian'anmen Square is in full swing to embrace the extravaganza which will add an upbeat note to the country's 60th founding anniversary.

At the center of Tian'anmen Square, right next to the Monument to the People's Heroes, two gigantic digital screens are displaying the capital's scenic views and landmark buildings. They are planked with 56 columns, 13meters tall and painted in red and yellow, representing the country's 56 nationalities.

Flags on Tian'anmen Rostrum flutter against autumn breeze. Later in the morning, Chinese top leaders, like their predecessors, will be standing on the rostrum and watch the grand show of armed forces and masses.

Opposite Wangfujing Street, a prime shopping center in downtown Beijing, a miniature of the Bird's Nest, where the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games opening and closing ceremonies were held, was constructed. Right across the street, there stood the Haibao, mascot of the World Expo 2010 Shanghai.

Potted plants and flowers line up the streets while colorful posters are pasted on walls, and celebration slogans can be seen on billboards. There are also ornamental plants and plant structures in the shape of dragon, Great Wall, and all symbols of the country's pride.

The grand military parade scheduled to be held at 10 a.m. Thursday will be the 14th parade since 1949, the year when the People's Republic of China was founded.

The most recent massive parade was in 1999 when New China marked its 50th birthday.

Military parades normally feature a display of formations of the armed forces, as well as new weapons, artillery, tanks, armored vehicles, and aircraft.