OKURA, Yamagata Prefecture--Norio Sato single-handedly revived the rickshaw tradition in this secluded Hijiori Onsen hot spring resort here in 1998 after a 90-year hiatus, and he's been pulling ...

But what came into view was a rickshaw. Instead of being pulled by a horse, it was being pulled by a man—usually a skinny, bedraggled, barefoot man who didn’t look quite up to the task.