same same...but different.

A common phrase Koreans use in daily conversation is "same same...but different." It took me awhile to understand the relevance if this phrase...but lately we have been finding this phrase helpful. When you are asking how to get to a specific store-- someone will ask you to go to a place you are familiar with (go to the corner by the school) then they will tell you to go down two blocks and take a right, and the store is right there. They will conclude the sentence with it's same same...but different. And they are so right. It literally looks EXACTLY the same as the corner you are familiar with (the corner by school). It has the exact same stores around it and the colors of the buildings are the exact same, however, you are in a different location. This phrase has become very familiar to us. Riding on the bus from Suji to Seoul, everything looks same same...but different.