Never mind the floods. Enjoy the rollercoaster ride and keep smiling.
What has been happening in North Korea recently is straight out of the "Hereditary Dictatorship for Dummies" handbook.
North Korea's ruling party has removed a top military official close to the centre of power, suggesting new leader Kim Jong-un and his closest advisers may be purging the ruling elite to strengthen their grip on the secretive state.
China has denied allegations that its firms had exported banned goods to North Korea, after Japanese media reported that Chinese-made missile transporters were sold to Pyongyang in violation of a U.N. Security Council resolution.
China's most senior diplomat has vowed to deepen ties with North Korea and praised its young leader Kim Jong-un, despite an international outcry over Pyongyang's recent rocket launch and the possibility of a third nuclear test by the isolated state.
The UN nuclear watchdog says it is now unlikely to visit North Korea after Pyongyang announced it was no longer bound by an agreement with the United States for a moratorium on missile and nuclear tests.
North Korea's new leader addressed his nation and the world for the first time Sunday, vowing to place top priority on his impoverished country's military, which promptly unveiled a new long-range missile.
A satellite launch North Korea had hailed as a moment of national pride ended in failure yesterday when the rocket disintegrated over the Yellow Sea, earning Pyongyang embarrassment as well as condemnation from a host of nations that deemed it a covert test of missile technology.
New Zealand has joined other countries in condemning North Korea's long-range rocket launch today.
A long-range rocket launch by North Korea would heighten tensions in the region and lead world powers to put Pyongyang back in the dock at the UN Security Council, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon warns.
Recent satellite images show North Korea is digging a new underground tunnel in what appears to be preparation for a third nuclear test, South Korean intelligence officials say.
The announcement last week that North Korea has agreed with the United States to halt nuclear and long-range missile tests and suspend its uranium enrichment programme in return for thousands of tonnes of food aid is a welcome sign of progress in the isolationist Stalinist regime.
North Korea has agreed to stop nuclear tests, uranium enrichment and long-range missile launches, and to allow checks by nuclear inspectors, in an apparent policy shift that paves the way for resuming long-stalled disarmament talks.
North Korea's young new leader gets rock star treatment when he visits his troops - just as his father did. But while the late Kim Jong Il mostly stayed aloof in dark shades, his son holds hands and hugs his soldiers.
North Korea says late leader Kim Jong Il's body will be permanently laid in state in a memorial palace in the capital.
North Korea says it will issue special pardons for convicts, a rare move that appeared to be aimed at boosting the popularity of young new leader Kim Jong Un as he attempts to fill his late father's shoes.
North Korea has vowed to make an all-out drive for prosperity as it unites behind new leader Kim Jong Un, ushering in 2012 with promises to resolve food shortages, bolster its military and defend Kim Jong Il's young son "unto death."
North Korea's first official communication with the outside world following the death of leader Kim Jong-il and the transition of power to his son was a sombre warning to South Korea and its allies that it would not change policies.
Kim Jong Il's son and successor was declared "supreme leader" of North Korea's ruling party, military and the people during a memorial today for his father in the first public endorsement of his leadership by the government.
Dr Fouchier is a decent man who means well. Yet what he has made is far more dangerous than North Korea's bombs.