Shimamura is tired of the bustling city He takes the train through the snow to the mountains of the west coast of Japan to meet with a geisha he believes he loves Beautiful & innocent Komako is tightly bound by the rules of a rural geisha & lives a life of servitude & seclusion that is alien to Shimamura & their love offers no freedom to either of them Snow Country is both delicate & subtle reflecting in Kawabata's exact lyrical writing the unspoken love & the understated passion of the young Japanese couple