Tennis in Paris, Formula 1 in Monaco, cinema in Cannes!

This was and still is a great Sunday in France as three important events have and are taking place. One in Paris, where lovers of tennis have been able to assist to the first tennis matches for the 2009 Roland Garros tournament also known as the French Open. In the men’ s the favorite is the Spaniard Rafael Nadal who will be trying to win for the 5th consecutive time. Among the women they are expectations for the World No. 1 Russian Dinara Safina, the evident favorite of the tournament. The American Williams sisters, numbers 2 and 3 will be great contenders.
For those whose favorite sport is car racing, Monaco, under a glorious sunshine, offered them today the Grand Prix which was won by the British racer Jenson Button. It was his sixth race victory of the season, putting him 16 points clear of Brawn team-mate Rubens Barrichello in the world championship standings. Today Barrichello finished second in Monaco with Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen in third.
And finally, if your interest is oriented towards cinema, just take a short drive west from Monaco to Cannes where tonight we will finally know who won the Palme d’Or. The town is full for the ending ceremony of the 62nd festival which will take place between 19:15 and 20:15. In the meantime all sorts of bets are taking place in the famous Croisette which is bursting with fans and paparazzi. Directors in the running for the prestigious prize include New Zealand’s Jane Campion for Bright Star. British film-maker Ken Loach with Looking for Eric is a contender, while Frenchman Jacques Audiard with Un prophète could give the country two wins in as many years.
If to all this we add a fantastic day to go to the beach, I don’t think any visitors to France, specially to the Riviera, are feeling disappointed today.