Tengu
The first thing you should know about street names in Japan is there aren't any! Incomprehensible as that might sound, apart from a very few main roads, the great majority of roads/streets/avenues/lanes etc are nameless.
They work on a system of Chomes, like a block number, and once you have narrowed your destination to the block, the houses are numbered IN THE ORDER THEY WERE BUILT!!!
Even the Japanese have problems getting around, and it is normal for directions to be given, following local landmarks like the house with the red roof, McDonalds etc.
So what do they do? You can put in the phone number of the destination, as it seems that they have geo-referenced all the phone locations, and that phone number will get you to where you want to go.
There are a number of Japanese GPS maps, such as UUD, which I have known people to download and use, but most are all Japanese language.
I used one of these in Japan, and really only used the zoom out function to try and get a 'big picture' view of where I was, and cross referenced it with an english paper map.
Japan is a blast, and check out the Toyoko Inn hotel chain for top class cheap accomodation; they are everywhere.
John
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