Transforming Memories into Art: A Journey to LALATOWNTransforming Memories into Art: A Journey to LALATOWN
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Hyung Joo's avatar
Hyung Joo Kim
• Jun 23
From a Memory to LALATOWN: Café Macchiato
Some people might look at this illustration and wonder:
“What is this?”
“Why Café Macchiato?”
“Is it a cartoon?”
And honestly, I understand.
But this illustration is not really about a café.
It is about a memory.
It is about kindness.
It is about a group of people whose warmth stayed with me long after I left.
This is one of the illustrations where I took a beautiful memory and moved it into LALATOWN.
A while ago, I traveled to Puerto Rico.
I was searching for a place where I might begin the second chapter of my life.
Not because I needed something grand.
My dream has always been surprisingly simple.
A small place with fruit trees.
Flowers blooming through the year.
A balcony.
Perilla leaves growing in pots.
Pumpkins drying in the sun.
Lemons.
Mangoes.
A quiet life filled with small things worth caring for.
During that trip, I stayed in Miramar, a neighborhood that immediately felt special to me.
At the top right of this illustration is Paul, the host of the Airbnb where I stayed. He loved gardening, and his home felt peaceful in a way that is difficult to describe.
Some mornings I sat there with a cup of coffee and felt unexpectedly emotional.
In the center of the illustration is Rafael, the owner of Café Macchiato.
What began as a simple stop for a drink turned into something much bigger.
When Rafael learned that I was visiting Puerto Rico to explore the possibility of living there, he began introducing me to people.
Sandy.
Fernando.
Rafael’s mother.
Neighbors.
Friends.
People who treated a stranger with kindness.
They helped me understand Miramar through their eyes.
They showed me homes.
Answered questions.
Shared stories.
And perhaps most importantly, they never told me that my dream was impossible.
Even when I explained that I wanted to move with my cat and dog.
Even when my dream sounded unrealistic.
Instead, they said:
“Don’t worry. We’ll help.”
That kindness stayed with me.
The people in this illustration are not perfect people.
They are not fairy-tale characters.
They have worries, struggles, and difficult days just like anyone else.
But during a time when my own heart was carrying many wounds, they offered warmth.
And I remember that.
Some of the people here are inspired by real individuals.
Some are visitors I noticed sitting in the café.
Some are memories that transformed as they traveled from Puerto Rico into LALATOWN.
The café itself is not an exact portrait of Café Macchiato.
It is a memory that became a place.
A real place that slowly became a LALATOWN place.
One of my favorite memories happened when I ordered an iced Americano.
One of the employees spoke mostly Spanish.
At some point I heard the word “Coreano.”
Apparently they had noticed that I was Korean.
Someone joked that Koreans drink iced Americanos.
We laughed.
Rafael’s wife helped translate.
Soon we were talking about Korean actors, K-pop, and all kinds of things.
It was such a small moment.
But those small moments are often the ones that stay with us.
And that is why I wanted to share this process video.
Not because it shows how I draw.
But because it shows how a memory slowly becomes part of LALATOWN.
Thank you to everyone who became part of this story.
And thank you for listening to my LALATOWN story.
Illustrationstorytellingworldbuilding
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