Winston Reid is looking forward to showing his West Ham United around his home country of New Zealand this summer.
The Hammers travel to Reid's homeland for the Football United Tour in July, spending eight days in the country, during which they will face Wellington Phoenix at Eden Park, Auckland on Wednesday 23 July and Sydney FC at Westpac Stadium in Wellington on Saturday 26 July*.
The New Zealand national team captain is naturally excited to be heading to the southwestern Pacific Ocean nation with his club-mates and is looking forward to putting on a show for his fellow countrymen.
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"The plane is going to be a little more crowded than it usually is!" said the centre-back, who was born in the Auckland suburb of North Shore and played junior football for Milford School and local club Takapuna AFC.
"First and foremost, it's going to be good for the public down there to see a couple of good quality teams, while I think it will be good for our squad as well to get out of our normal environment. We're travelling a little bit further abroad than usual and it will be good for the lads to see a country they would perhaps never go to otherwise.
"It is a long, long way away on a plane, but when the players get there they will enjoy themselves."
West Ham's clash with A-League side Wellington Phoenix will take place in Reid's native city of Auckland, with the match being played at Eden Park - New Zealand's largest stadium with a capacity of 50,000. It will then be onto the 34,500-capacity Westpac Stadium in Wellington, where Reid appeared for the All Whites in an international friendly with Paraguay in 2010, and a meeting with A-League challengers Sydney FC.
For Reid, the prospect of pulling on his Claret and Blue shirt in such familiar surroundings is one to be relished. With excitement growing in New Zealand ahead of the Hammers' visit, the No2 has encouraged his fellow Kiwis to turn out in their thousands to watch the Hammers in action.
"New Zealand is a sporting nation. They like their sport down there so I am sure, if things are done correctly, we will get a good crowd down there and hopefully we will put on a good show when we get there.
"I think the most important thing is that it is our pre-season, so we will just have to get our work done. We know we will be working hard down there and doing our best to get fit and ready for the new season."
While pre-season training and matches will of course take up the vast majority of the Hammers' time and energy while they are in New Zealand, Reid is hoping to be able to show his team-mates - and West Ham supporters - the sights and sounds of one of the world's most-beautiful countries.
So, what will Reid be encouraging them to do during their visit?
"That's a good question! If you are travelling that far abroad, I think you've got to see some different things. The nature there is really nice and there are lots of activities and sports which you can do outside.
"In general the public are very friendly so, all in all, if you are going down there then bring a smile, I guess!"