Şişli, a trade and cultural center in Istanbul with many entertainment venues
Şişli is a district of Istanbul, located on the European side. It has 25 neighborhoods and borders with other districts such as Besiktas in the east, Kağıthane in the North and West and Beyoğlu in the South. The history of Şişli goes back to 16th century. The current population of the district is about 300 thousand.
Şişli is considered to be a luxurious district hosting exclusive hotels, fashion boutiques and shopping malls such as the huge Cevahir shopping center. While Halaskargazi Street and the surrounding area are full of cocktail bars, one can also find stylish restaurants that serve European and international cuisine. Şişli which is not a coastal district has many historical monuments, business places, modern trade centers, cultural and art centers. The house where Atatürk lived for a while, now called Atatürk Museum is also located in the area.
In time, houses and mansions with gardens in this district gradually began to be replaced by apartment buildings. In the 1920s and 1930s, Şişli and its surroundings became popular neighborhoods where wealthy people wanted to acquire an apartment which was considered a fashionable thing to do at the time.
In 1970s many famous shops and shopping venues at Beyoğlu district moved to Şişli area and the population substantially increased. In the 1980s, some streets in the area became the most popular shopping malls in Istanbul. In this district, many apartments formerly used as residence on the gradually became business premises. By mid-1980s the population of the district had exceeded half a million. In 1990s large shopping centers were opened while the district still managed to keep its importance as a business area, as well. Osmanbey, a neighborhood in the district for instance is a textile and apparel center formed by thousands of large and small companies since the 1970s. The district started undergoing another change beginning 2000s with high-rise buildings for residential as well as office use and became the business and financial center of the economy of Istanbul and Turkey.
On the other hand Şişli is very rich in terms of educational institutions, also. There are many preschool education institutions, primary schools and secondary education institutions within the district’s boundaries. Prestigious schools such as Nişantaşı Anatolian High School (Old English High School), Notre Dame de Sion French high school, Nişantaşı Nuri akin Anadolu High School (Old Nişantaşı Girls High School), Saint Michel high school, Şişli Anadolu high school are long-established secondary education institutions in the district. There are also several higher education institutions here such as Marmara, Istanbul Bilgi, Beykent, Bahçeşehir, Haliç, Istanbul Bilim, Nişantaşı and Okan universities.
There are several sufficient health facilities in the region such as 2 large state hospitals and many private ones, many pharmacies and nursing homes.
As for cultural activities, the district has many cinema and theatre halls and considered to be one of the main cultural centers of Istanbul. The most important spots in the district are Harbiye Outdoor Theatre, Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall, Lütfi Kırdar Congress and Exhibition Palace. Among social facilities one could use in the area we can name many venues such as Harbiye Muhsin Ertuğrul stage, Gönül Ülkü-Gazenfer Özcan Theater, Kenter Theater, Harbiye Cep Theater, Profilo Cultural Center, Studio Theater and more.
Şişli offers an opportunity to visit some important museums in the area such as the Military Museum which was used as a Military School in the late Ottoman Empire. The museum that holds a collection of thousands of items displays many medals, military clothes, flags and banners, shirts, armor, shields, tables, weapon types from past to present.
