Shermine Shahrivar in St. Barts in 2009

Kanye West has upgraded from Miss Albania (pics here) to Miss Europe. That makes complete sense. Albania's per capita GDP is only $7,453. That's pretty pathetic. From the New York Daily News:

Angela Martini missed her flight to Cannes on Wednesday night - and it's probably a good thing. Had Miss Universe Albania 2010 actually jetted to the Croisette, she might have caught Kanye West making time with another beauty queen: Miss Europe 2005 Shermine Shahrivar.

A source in the South of France tells us the hip-hop artist was cozy with Shahrivar, who's of Iranian descent but now lives in the U.S. and has modeled for American Apparel. She was recently linked with "Twilight" actor Xavier Samuel. The knife-eyed brunette met West at the poolside VIP area at the after-party for amfAR's "Cinema Against AIDS" fund-raiser at the Hotel du Cap in nearby Antibes.

Our source says West and Shahrivar "kind of avoided each other" for part of the night, but eventually slunk off "to a couch by themselves." They left "hand in hand," around 2:30 a.m., the source adds. We're also hearing that West and Shahrivar were together at the Cannes club restaurant Baoli on Tuesday night.

Don't get a big head Kanye. There's still one thing that's being stuck into more models than you: their index fingers. The truth though is that seeing this self-absorbed loud-mouth constantly pull hot international ass is frustrating. If I'd known when I was younger that becoming someone like Kanye would lead to untold women and riches, I never would have finished college growing.

*10 Shermine Shahrivar pictures total in the gallery: