Cultural tidbit from mymerhaba.com

Today my friends here in Turkey are celebrating Mevlid Kandili. Here is some info on this holiday:

The story of Kandil
The five holy evenings on the Muslim calendar are called Kandil.
During the Ottoman Empire Sultan Selim II of 16th century lit candles
on the minarets of the mosques in order to announce these holy nights
to the public. Since this calendar is calculated with the revolution
of the moon around the earth the dates of the Kandils differ every
year.
Mevlid Kandili - The birth of Prophet Mohammad (March 19, 2008)
Regaip Kandili - The beginning of the pregnancy of Prophet Mohammad's
mother (July 3, 2008)
Miraç Kandili - Prophet Mohammad's rising to sky (July 29, 2008)
Berat Kandili - The forgiveness of the sins (August 16, 2008)
Kadir Gecesi - The Koran's first appearance to Prophet Mohammad
(September 26, 2008)

These nights Muslims usually worship and sing Mevlit, a poem written
for the birth of Prophet Mohammad. Kandils were holy days when young
members visited the older members of the family, however today the
Kandil greetings are made with phone calls. Some restaurants serving
alcoholic beverages may be closed at Kandils. Most of the pastry shops
and bakery sell Kandil Simidi (special small crispy bread ring strewn
with or without sesame seeds). In some apartments the neighbors hand
out helva (a special Turkish dessert made of semolina or flour) or
lokma tatlısı (again a special Turkish dessert made of fried dough
with syrup).