"At night, we stayed at one of the small, no-frills ryokans that dot the peninsula, where we soaked our aching muscles in piping hot onsens before dinners of perfectly prepared sashimi, crispy tempura, and flame-cooked kobe beef. All were extraordinary, but my favorite was the eight-room Organic Hotel Kirinosato-Takahara, where I unrolled my futon in front of the open windows and fell asleep as the breeze rolled in over the paddies just outside."