Mező Szilveszter szerk.: Hátizsákkal és bakancsban a Föld körül. Balázs Dénes világjáró geográfus (Debrecen, 2007)
Around the Globe in trekking boots and with backpack
The opening exhibition of the series is devoted to the uniquely versatile lifework of dr. Dénes Balázs (1924-1994), geographer, speleologist, author of several books on geography, organizer of scholarly and scientific activities, and founder of a museum. Dr. Balázs has been an outstanding figure of the discipline of Hungarian geography whose books and fascinating travelogues provided food for thought for a number of generations. Prompted by his charismatic way of lecturing and by his books written in a truly impressive style, numerous people have chosen the cultivation of the field of geography for their vocation and have turned definitively towards the exact sciences and towards uncovering the natural secrets of our wonderful planet, the Earth. Dénes Balázs was born in Debrecen in 1924. He went to secondary school here and graduated from the Debrecen Piarist School of Commerce in 1943. Fate would take him rather far away from his hometown, yet, even after settling down in Érdliget, he always thought of Debrecen fondly and was invited back several times to give lectures and presentations. Through conducting research of the caves in Hungary, dr. Balázs got in touch quite early with natural sciences. It was a matter of serious consideration and acknowledgment in professional circles when, in the 1950s, he and several other researchers managed to explore Szabadság-barlang [Freedom Cave] near the settlement Egerszög and made it accessible for tourists. His affection towards karstic locations and caves remained present all through his life. While he was tirelessly exploring the most diverse karstic areas mostly in the tropical regions of our planet, he never failed to actively participate in the work of his spelunking colleagues in Hungary either. For decades, he acted as the editor of Karszt és Barlang [Karst and Cave], the periodical of Magyar Karszt- és Barlangkutató Társulat [Hungarian Society for the Exploration of Caves and Karstic Locations].
