Dina Al-Sabah family; she is close lineage because her grandfather was the son of Salim Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, ruler of Kuwait from 1917 to 1921. The Al-Sabahs have ruled Kuwait for over more than two centuries. Al-Sabah was raised in Egypt, Morocco, Italy and the United Kingdom, so she was exposed to many different cultures at a young age. A natural athlete, she started horseback riding at the age of five. She continued her active lifestyle throughout her high school years, competing in equestrian shows and participating in track, volleyball and basketball at the American School of Tangier in Morocco. Al-Sabah is fluent
The Years of Rice and Salt "The Age of Great Progress", is set during the 19th century and begins during a war between the Ottoman Empire and the Indian state of Travancore. The Indians have previously defeated the Mughals and the Safavids and have developed more modern forms of warfare, emphasising surprise and mobility, they have also invented steam engines and ironclad warships which they sail straight to the city of Konstantiniyye and capture it with the aid of military balloons. The Ottomans are defeated easily. A Muslim Armenian doctor named Ismail ibn Mani al-Dir, who had served the Ottoman Sultan, is captured and sent to