Heidi Klum had the "worst experience" when she first went to New York.
The 44-year-old German supermodel had to "learn to love" the Big Apple because she was "terrified" and found the city unpleasantly cold and dirty when she first arrived.
She recalled: "I came [to New York] in 1994, I was on my own, no cellphones and a piece of paper with my address.
"I had no friends, had never been here, and it was terrifying.
"It was dirty, roaches everywhere, it was the end of the year and cold.
"It was the worst experience in the beginning. But I learnt to love it. I think it’s one of the best cities in the world."
The ‘Project Runway’ host – who raises kids Leni, 13, Henry, 12, Johan, 10, and Lou, seven, with ex-husband Seal – admitted people used to "laugh" about her modelling ambitions because of her curvy figure.
She said: "I think the industry hasn’t [been focused] on diversity for a while but it is shifting. It’s not one size fits all.
"I still remember when people laughed about the fact I wanted to be a high-fashion model.
"When I first went to Paris, they looked at my model portfolio and said, ‘Goodbye’.
"If they said, ‘Try on this dress’, it would get stuck on my boobs or hips. The girls were so thin and it’s the way the industry has been for years."
And Heidi thinks diversity isn’t the only way the fashion industry is changing.
She said: "Fashion is changing. So many big designers aren’t even showing at fashion weeks.
"You can’t justify something so expensive when you can buy something so much cheaper and look so much better."
Heidi Klum’s New York shock
