The real Tokyo story of Professor Koh Woon-ki of Hanyang University's Department of Cultural Contents, who went to study abroad in Tokyo in 1999 at the age of 38.

Even after returning from studying abroad, he frequently visited Tokyo and lived without losing touch with the connection between Tokyo and Korea, so I think it was that tense feeling that allowed him to complete this book.
In particular, for nearly ten years since 2008, he has been at the forefront of the "Snow Country Literature Tour," acting as a "Snow Country Guide," experiencing with his own eyes and feet the vivid scenes of Japanese literature that are alive throughout Tokyo.
In some ways, he is even more deeply immersed in Japanese literature than any other Japanese writer. This book, in the rare experience of unfolding the pages of literature along a visible course, is a story of Tokyo we have never known before, and I dare to say that it will become the story of Tokyo we will come to know from now on.

It would not be an exaggeration to call his every step through Tokyo a "stroll," but the strides and accompanying explanations are light, and the fact that he remembers this process as a significant footstep is probably due to his humble "attitude," which does not hide his love and respect for literature, especially among the classics.
He always seemed to have his head bowed about 15 degrees, following silently, following behind the fear of the inexplicable world.
What course have you taken to visit Tokyo so far?
If you can follow Professor Koun-gi's guidance and explore the literature overflowing with stories throughout Tokyo, buried in snow, you will have a lasting, enriching memory.
Especially in this snowy winter in Tokyo.

On January 31, 1999, an ordinary grandmother of geisha descent passed away.
Kiku Kodaka, aged 84.
Even while lying in bed, he enjoyed reading books.
A nurse passes by and asks absentmindedly.
Do you read romance novels?
The grandmother put down the book she was reading, looked up at the nurse, and answered.
?Love is not something you read, it's something you do.
He has a unique wit when it comes to speaking.
This grandmother, who lived as a geisha until her mid-twenties in Yuzawa, Niigata, famous for its hot springs, had a fateful encounter with Yasunari Kawabata, who had come to write a novel in the winter of 1934, when she was just turning twenty.
And that's where "Snow Country" was born.

As a geisha, her name was Matsue.
Matsue is known as the model for Komako, the main character of "Snow Country."

The woman's impression was unexpectedly clean.
I thought that even the crevices under my toes would be clean.

This is the scene where the male protagonist Shimamura first meets Komako at a hot spring inn.
And if you go further back, you will see a more detailed description.
A slender yet sharp nose, lips as smooth as the rim of a beautiful purple annelid, eyebrows that seemed to droop slightly, eyes that were neither upturned nor droopy, but seemed to have been drawn straight on purpose, and skin as fresh as a lily or an onion bulb that could be said to have been dyed with the color of a mountain.
And this appearance can be summed up in one word: “bright and clean.”
Shimamura is a person who enjoys traveling and studying dance without doing anything special.
I came to a hot spring town that had become prosperous with the introduction of the train, and was just lounging around, hiking, and such.
The name of the village does not appear in the novel.
But it is certain that Yuzawa is the stage.

---From "Face and Voice - Yasunari Kawabata's 'Snow Country' and Geisha Matsue"