To rousing cheers of “Long live their majesties,” Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej left a Bangkok hospital Thursday afternoon after a nearly four-year stay.
The king, 85 and the world’s longest-reigning monarch, entered Siriraj Hospital in September 2009 for treatment for a lung inflammation, according to local media reports. His wife, Queen Sirikit, 80, was also admitted to the same hospital in July 2012 for what doctors described as reduced blood flow to the brain.
Well-wishers, clad in the royal colors of yellow and pink, clutched portraits of the king and waved national and royal flags along the royal motorcade route.
The royal couple arrived the same evening at their seaside palace in Hua Hin, where they primarily resided before their hospitalizations.