Happy New Year - with Expat Celebrity Supermodel Gail Elliott

Happy New Year to Everyone, all over the world! It is already 1 January 2008 here in Australia and waking up this morning to the possibility of a sensational new chapter in your life is a wonderful feeling. It is like we all get to wipe the slate clean again every January 1. What an opportunity.

Our January Home Page is now online. We are very excited this month to feature our interview with Celebrity Expat Woman - Gail Elliott. Gail is a British Supermodel who rose to fame in the 1980s. She is a friend to the likes of Cindy Crawford, Yasmin Le Bon, Elle Macpherson and Helena Christensen and has lived the high life - strutting the global catwalks for famous designers such as Gianni Versace, Calvin Klein, John Galliano, Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, Ralph Lauren, Gucci, Prada and Marc Jacobs to name just a handful. She has graced magazine covers such as Vogue, Bazaar and Elle, but now spends her time developing her own fashion label and stores for Little Joe NY. I talked to Gail about her first expat experience in Japan - which stands out to me as an example of why we should never give up - despite when it gets tough abroad and people take advantage of you. If Gail had given up when she came across obstacles in Japan, she never would have made it to the top!

For the record, Gail was a truly delightful woman to interview. She always answered her emails personally and was incredibly humble. I wish her every success with her new fashion label. In my opinion, she deserves success.

Other features this month include:

Jill's interview with Rebecca Kousky - the founder of Nest, a nonprofit with a mission of giving micro-finance loans to female artists in developing countries and an online artistic community. Nest’s micro-finance loans allow women to create and/or maintain small arts-and crafts-based businesses. Nest raises funds for loans via its online store. Nest sells clothing, accessories and home merchandise created by successful international artists and designers to discerning customers who want their purchases to make a difference.

My interview with US travel personality, Marybeth Bond, of The Gutsy Traveler, who recounts her experience of being on the Oprah Winfrey show... as well as discussing the book, A Woman's Europe, which she edited for Traveler's Tales (Publisher).

Jill's interview with Hilly van Swol-Ulbrich & Bettina Kaltenhäuser who wrote the great book, 'When Abroad Do As The Local Children Do', aimed at 8-12 year olds who are moving abroad.

And my interview with our Mentor of the Month, Andreea G, in Brussels, Belgium. Andreea moved from Romania to Belgium many years ago to study International Affairs. She loves it so much that she is still there and shows no signs of leaving just yet. Find out why...

Congratulations to Lula, for winning US$100 for her Winning Story of the Month, Pencils and Apples: A Clash of Cultures.

The five winners of the giveaway book, The World Is A Kitchen, will be announced in our Member Newsletter, which will be sent out on January 3 or 4.

If you are not yet a Member, please support our site and sign up now for our monthly newsletter. We would love to welcome you into the ExpatWomen Online Community.

Thanks and Best Wishes for a Healthy, Happy and Prosperous 2008,

Andrea.