Vlad turns 62: Russian president celebrates birthday with day off in Siberian wilderness

Russian President Vladimir Putin will celebrate his birthday on October 7 in the Siberian taiga, a vast forested area in the northern regions of Russia covering hundreds of thousands of square miles, Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Monday.

"Putin has booked a holiday for tomorrow. Tonight he will fly over to Siberia, to the Siberian taiga, 300-400 kilometers away from the nearest town or village, where he will relax on his birthday," Peskov said.

Peskov added that no "official meetings" were planned for Russian leader's birthday.

"Most likely, everyone will send their best wishes to the President tomorrow. Although I cannot tell you who he will be with, because I do not know," Peskov said.

"Everyone who can, will be able to reach him by phone. Also everyone who wants to will be able to send telegrams, just like they do every year. We receive a huge number of letters, best wishes, telegrams, etc.," Peskov commented.

When journalists asked the Presidential spokesman why Putin decided to take time-off on his birthday for the first time, Peskov said that "everything is evolving... this year he decided to spend it this way."

"You know that in the past his birthdays were busy with official meetings, you know this year his timetable is not simply tight, but extremely tight, sometimes he gets close to a 24-hour-long busy schedule with a very large area to travel," Peskov explained.

Vladimir Putin was born on October 7, 1952 in Saint Petersburg (formerly Leningrad, in the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic). On Tuesday, the Russian leader will celebrate his 62nd birthday.

It's lonely at the top