Polka-dot dresses and manual threshing machines were among the hottest consumer products in North Korea last year, according to an annual list compiled by a research analyst in South Korea.

The arrival of the boldly-patterned dresses in the top 10 list was down to North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un's wife, Lee Sol-Ju, who was seen wearing them to public functions on state television.

A man who was pulled over for speeding as he rushed his pregnant wife to the hospital said he was determined to keep going despite the police lights flashing behind him.

Tyler Rathjen planned to keep going as his wife, Ashley, began giving birth to their son in the passenger seat. But a red light with heavy traffic finally forced him to stop.

Spring may be around the corner, but in Estonia residents of one tiny island are celebrating the cold with the opening of a 12-kilometer (seven-mile) ice highway over the Baltic Sea that is one of Europe's longest.

"We wait for ice roads every winter because the frozen sea makes our lives much easier," Heldy Polluste, whose husband made the drive from Kihnu island to the mainland over the weekend, told Agence France Presse Monday.

Britain's junior transport minister Norman Baker is releasing his debut rock album at the age of 55, The Sunday Times newspaper reported.

The Liberal Democrat lawmaker is the lead singer and main lyricist with the Reform Club, a group he originally formed decades earlier.

Starting with the historic moment when the first Latin American pontiff greeted the crowds in St Peter's Square after his election on Wednesday, Pope Francis has shown a lively sense of humour.

The smiling 76-year-old waved his hand in the air to underline a point about just how far the cardinals who elected him had looked to find a new pontiff.

It's notorious for its cramped living conditions, traffic-clogged streets and polluted air, but once a year Hong Kong celebrates all things green at the city's flower show.

Though most residents have no outdoor space for gardening, thousands flock to the annual 10-day event, which started on Friday and covers six football pitches in the central Victoria Park.

During Baghdad's darkest days, often the only light at night was that of gunfire and mortar rounds. But the Iraqi capital now looks a world apart, with packed restaurants, parks and even the odd nightclub.

Though still a long way from its once-lofty status as one of the region's most dynamic nightspots, and with the social scene out of reach for many Baghdadis, the options after sunset offer a rare bright spot for a violence-wracked country.

Japan's weather agency announced the official beginning of cherry blossom season in Tokyo on Saturday, equaling the record for the earliest ever start.

The national weather service used the capital's central Yasukuni Shrine as a barometer to judge the start of the season, which sees an explosion of colors that last only about a week.

The Canadian commander of the International Space Station delighted schoolchildren in a live question and answer session conducted from space on Friday.

Chris Hadfield, who became the first Canadian to take command of the ISS on Wednesday, thrilled his young audience as he floated around during the grilling before signing off with a somersault.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden on Thursday launched his new podcast, "Being Biden," to share his behind-the-scenes view of life as number two in the world's biggest superpower.

According to the White House, in each installment the famously jocular VP will tell the story behind a particular photo -- where it was taken, why he thinks it matters and how it fits into the big picture.