At 8 a.m. we leave for the day-long safari through the Serengeti. Our lodge, the Ndutu Lodge, lies outside the boundaries of the park and therefore we must first take a ride on the plains until we reach the Naabi Hill Gate. Underway, we already see plenty of animals, especially a lot of gazelles and the first hyena.

The Serengeti seems a big dry plain but there still are some small pools of water. In one of them, about twenty hippos are submerged. They look like a group of stones as they have their heads underwater. Only very occasionally they show their nostrils above the waterline.

The first real predators that we see are the Cheetahs. First four at some distance, and then another two fairly close. They were sitting under a tree but when they see the jeep they walk away slowly.

The park also has many different kinds of deer and antelope. In addition to the ubiquitous gazelles, we see impalas, hartebeests and Bohor bucks. They all stand around in small groups along the sandy road that we must follow with our jeeps. If a jeep stops, they look up and pull back a bit, but they are not really skittish.

Then the time has come for the search for lions. Search is a relative concept here because the jeep drivers have a radio on board to keep each other informed. Also, oncoming jeeps are often asked for information. A group of four lions has made itself comfortable in the shade under a big tree. The two males and two females do not even look up when three jeeps stop in front of them. It is so remarkable how close you can come, but these animals are afraid of nobody, and also accustomed to the many jeeps. A bit later we find another couple. This time on their favorite lookout, a “kopje” (rock in the flat land).

After lunch at the visitor center (where you can also stretch your legs because in the park you are not allowed to leave your vehicle), we stated that we would like to see a leopard. “If you're lucky …”, our driver Mouni replies. And we are! Within less than 10 minutes we encounter a traffic jam of jeeps. On a tree branch lies a very lazy leopard. He is close, you can see his spotted hide with the naked eye. We remain to watch him for quite a long time, but he does not move more than to rearrange his leg to lie even more comfortably. Surely the highlight of the day, because leopards are quite rare to see.

On our way back to the lodge, we come across two arguing elephants. A jeep is caught in the middle between them (a somewhat unhappy position), but the big beasts have only eyes for each other. They are only threatening: one takes a few steps forward and the other pulls back a little. A few minutes later, it’s the other way around. At one point one elephant in his anger kicks a tree, which is overthrown like a twig. The giants keep on threatening each other but do not fight.