Tanzania - Day 6: Serengeti National Park

New Year's Day began at midnight, dancing and singing around the campfire with the Lodge staff.
We got to pop some corks while the employees clapped, sang, and danced, giving us a glimpse into their culture.
New Year's Eve was completely different this time.

Just 3 hours later, we were awakened again. 
While Roli slept deeply relaxed, Tanja couldn't sleep in the slightly musty bed. When she heard 'munching noises' outside the tent at 3:30 AM and curiously peeked out of the mosquito net, Roli also woke up. 

Munching, biting grass, and making some similar burping sounds, we suspected a zebra was outside our tent.
But when Roli opened the window (a tarp over a mosquito net), he couldn't believe his eyes.
A buffalo was grazing leisurely just in front of us. During the 30 minutes we spent kneeling and whispering by the window, we also spotted a few of its companions tackling the grass on the other side of the tent and wandering about.

Still a bit sleepy from the night's action, we set off again right after breakfast on the bumpy drive, which Tanja found reminiscent of her buggy walks on gravel roads with Dad, and we tried not to fall asleep.
However, that faded quickly when we passed the entrance to the national park and immediately saw the lion family from the previous day.
They had also had breakfast, as the zebra or its remains were scattered within a 10m radius nearby.

During the all-day game drive, we were fortunate enough to see all the animals we had wished for. Leopards, cheetahs, hyenas, alligators, and of course many more.
Thus, we were able to see all the Big 5, Ugly 5, and many more.

Back at the lodge, our friends the buffalo were already waiting around the pool, in the middle of the day, not to splash around, but to feed.
This made our pool visit all the more exciting and thrilling.
The fact that it was New Year's Day was noticeable not only by the reduced staff but also because we were only 6 guests at dinner and could no longer enjoy a buffet, but could only choose from 3 dishes instead.
However, this did not detract from the culinary delight.
After a short digestion pause by the campfire, we were accompanied to the tent not only by the security guy but also by the buffalo, who still couldn't get enough - of us or the grass, that remains unclear.