Two Oceans Aquarium accountant Moneer “Mo” Dalwai, who started with us in January this year, crunches numbers. But in his spare time he is an intrepid adventurer with a taste for Eastern classical music and crime thrillers. In 2006, Mo even made it up Kilimanjaro and to the Mount Everest base camp! We find out more about our thrill-seeking numbers man.

Moneer at Mount Everest in 2006. The snow on his beard turned into ice during a blizzard on the way down from Gorakshep to Periche.

What are you reading?

Crime thrillers. I’m currently reading Patricia Cornwell’s The Scarpetta Factor.


What kind of music do you love?

Eastern classical music.

Favourite holiday spot?

No specific holiday spot but I enjoy the natural beauty of South Africa. There is so much to see in our own beautiful country.

What do you enjoy doing?

A view of just a few of the many hundreds of tents at Everest base camp. Yes, the white you see is ice.

I love hiking in the mountains; I’ve hiked most of the local mountains in the Western Cape. The most exciting two-day hike would be Harkerville (just outside Knysna). The most difficult hike: Arangieskop in Robertson. The most scenic hike: Otter Trail in Tsitsikamma.

What’s the craziest thing you’ve done?

Quite a few! I got married at 22; still happily married with three children and two grandchildren. And 
I climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Everest base camp and St Elbrus in Russia.

What’s your green tip?

Start a worm farm and grow your own veggies. It tastes better!

Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world, peaks at 8 850m

What do you love most about your job?

You cannot love the number-crunching part of any finance job. However, the great bunch of people at the Aquarium makes it all worthwhile.

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