After a marathon journey from Colombo we arrived this afternoon in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Although a lot has been made of the long journey we all accept that as professional sportsmen we will at times have to take a longer journey than usual in order to honour our commitments. The reality of the last few days is that Cathay Pacific, one of the Australian Cricket Board's best sponsors, is the official airline carrier of the Australian cricket team. They are an excellent sponsor who always provides us with one of the best services we could ever hope for. The fact that they have their base in Hong Kong means that we often travel through there to make our next destinations. Although it was a long trip it wasn't that big a deal and as usual we arrived at our next port of call relatively fresh and ready for this short tour of Zimbabwe.

With the beautiful jacaranda trees in blossom, sun shining and magical blue skies replacing the mandatory Colombon thunder clouds, it felt like a spring day in Perth when we climbed out of the plane. Never having been to Zimbabwe before, but having heard very positive stories about the climate, the people and the country, I am looking forward to this new experience.

The tour of Sri Lanka has been tough with many valuable lessons learned and it almost feels like the start of a new adventure now that we have left the heavy air, heavy security and busy streets of Sri Lanka. With one practice match and a Test in the next 10 days, this visit will be short and hectic but I am sure very enjoyable. Only a few of the guys have been to this part of Africa before and with a lot of interest in the first Test match between our two countries it promises to be a fantastic climax to what has been a long, taxing time away from home.

With one day to get over our jet lag and prepare for these new conditions the clock is ticking before we get back onto the park in an environment much more like home. The blue sky and clear air are very attractive natural commodities conducive to wanting to start playing cricket again, even though our last series only finished a couple of days ago.

From Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, JL