Miss Universe 2011: Sexy Chilean miners and vampires, oh my

The 2011 Miss Universe Pageant is set to unfold Monday (Sept. 12) evening. But for fans of seeing international beauties tricked out in their finest swimwear, gowns and assorted campy outfits, the Internet is nothing but an enabler. Why? Because thanks to a Trump-ed up organization, Miss Universe now makes photos of the contestants available online days, even weeks, before the broadcast.

On Thursday (Sept .8), one intrepid Zap2it staffer put together a gallery of this year's contestants wearing their national costumes. But, some of the costumes are so good that we feel compelled to pull them out and highlight them in this blog post.

So, have a look at our faves here, then click on the gallery below for the full treatment.

Sexy Vampire: Miss Romania Larisa Pope.