Autumn Days in Seoul: Favorite Cafe, Vintage Find, and Life as a Freelancer

Lovely fall weather

Champ Coffee just opened a new café five minutes away from my apartment — very lucky. So on mornings when the fall sunlight wakes me up, I run there for an iced flat white with a bright, citrusy bean. It’s the perfect pair with this season: strong sunlight, crisp air, and streets filled with green and yellow leaves.

And the best part? My favorite pastry shop, bakery MUI, is right next to it. So I usually grab a croissant and a raspberry pistachio pastry too. It's always crowded on weekend mornings, but I kind of enjoy that moment waiting in line, since the perfect weather and the buttery scent gifted me a little bit of patience.

Finding Balance

I realized that focusing too much on development can easily ruin my daily routine. I need to keep some distance from it. It’s still quite hard for me to step away from overwhelming tasks — maybe the hardest part since I started freelancing and working from home.

And the more I work, the more I find myself craving a change of environment. Not just traveling, not chasing short-term pleasure, I want to live somewhere new. I’ve been thinking about why that is, and I have a few guesses.

I’m not really an outgoing person with a high energy level. That means the daily stimuli I get are usually lower than those of more social people — and they get even lower when I'm buried in work.
But when I lived in foreign cities, I could get the right kind of dopamine so much more easily. Even something as mundane as just strolling the neighborhood or browsing a local market gave me a stronger sense of stimulation than doing the same things in Seoul. I truly enjoy the newness of a place, and the period of adapting to a new neighborhood.

A friend once told me that maybe a shared office would help, guessing that it’s because I’ve been working alone for too long. But the more I think about it, the more I realize that’s not the case. What I crave is a completely different type of stimulus — one that comes not from people, but from the environment itself.

All of these thoughts, I think, are part of the process of figuring out the right balance between meaningful work and everyday joy, between focus and rest. Still learning where my energy comes from.

A small destined find

While passing by Goob, a restaurant in Sindang last week, I saw a flea market they were hosting. They had so many vintage pieces from Japanese brands — Y/Project, Porter, Issey Miyake, Comme des Garçons, Needles… And unfortunately, I found mine, issey miyake deep purple drape skirt. It was destined to be mine. I always notice that invisible thread between an object and me. After a short moment of guilty hesitation, I took it home anyway.

Mug I made Finally Arrived

The mug I made at Pollygarden finally arrived and it’s so cute. The size is exactly right for my morning coffee.

Pollygarden has a unique style of ceramics works. Unlike wheel-thrown pottery, their pieces are made by attaching and sculpting small chunks of clay. Since I used to lose patience and smash everything I made on the wheel in my high school art class, this method suited me so much better. If you don't have the peace of mind for wheel pottery but still want to feel the clay and make something with it, I highly recommend their classes!

Look at my cute mug!

Wrapping Up

The autumn weather in Seoul has been so beautiful, but as the air suddenly turns winter-cold, it feels like the leaves might fall before they even get a chance to turn red. (Maybe it’s another reminder that our planet is hurting.) I feel so grateful to have the time to walk through the city on a sunny fall day, coffee in hand.
I hope everyone reading this also finds a moment to enjoy a peaceful walk and feel the air in this fleeting season.

As a 3-month-old freelancer, I’m in a phase of figuring out where to find dopamine beyond work. It’s so easy to get buried in projects when you’re doing everything alone for the first time. I know there's always a clear warning sign when my balance is off: the creative energy gauge hits empty and I no longer feel the urge to make something new.

So I want to give myself more of what truly fuels me — time with friends, reading books, artistic inspiration, and small everyday beauties. That’s where energy comes from, and that’s how I’ll keep creating with joy. 💫