My weekend trip to NYC this past weekend was my first visit back home in a long time, but also sadly an inauspicious one. I had just come home from a Friday mixer with the new residents and fellow when I got a phone call from my parents about my aunt’s passing. After seeing post-ops Saturday morning, I caught a last-minute flight that landed in time for lunch with my parents in Flushing before spending a quiet evening at home. On Sunday morning, the family congregated over take-out dim sum at my auntie’s place, which gave me a chance to catch up with the many cousins I’ve lost contact with. We took a photo of us, although our black suits made us look more like the Triad. The funeral itself brought back memories of Buddhist chants and joss paper, which to my surprise, I still remembered to fold. We celebrated my mom’s birthday over Chinese seafood, and before I knew it, was back in Durham by late evening. I was disappointed by the airline’s refusal to ease the cost of the overpriced flight despite a death in the family. With my upcoming expenses for conferences and interviews, I’ll need to starting saving up.

Taking call for the first 10 days of July was probably not the wisest choice I’ve made. Sure enough, by the end of the July 4th weekend, I’ve already gotten 2 open globes and a slew of other inpatient and ED consults to staff. It didn’t help that the residents who joined me in the OR were fresh out of first year, while the ones manning the floor were starting their first day of residency. In moments when I’m feeling a little down, one thing always bring a smile back to my face – noodles! Here’re the results of round 3 of my instant noodle competition.

1. Samyang Ramen – Beef Flavor (8, 8) – Not really beefy but still well-fermented broth is combined with springy noodles, like a milder form of neoguri
2. Mi Chay – La Bo-De (3,3) – The ghetto generic packaging predictably delivers bland, spicy soup and cardboard-textured noodles reminiscent of Cup o’Noodles.
3. Myojo Chukazanmai – Oriental Flavor (9,9) – Recommended by Nobel laureate Susumu Tonegawa and VR surgeon Shizuo Mukai, this line of near-perfect noodles taste just like the real thing.
4. Unif-100 – Artificial Stewed Pork Chop Flavor – (6, 6) Lots of freeze-dried goodies immersed in a salty broth is paired with average noodles, with emphasis on “artificial”.
5. Prima Taste Singapore Curry La Mian (7, 8) – The $3 fancy package comes with a nice, creamy if not a bit heavy broth, and unique dried steam noodles that is just a tad rubbery.
6. Shin Ramyun Black Premium Noodles (9,8) – The flavorful full-bodied broth with not one but two soup bases combines with amazing noodles to make these “premium” noodles near-perfection.
7. Nissin Ramen – Black Garlic Oil Tonkatsu Artificial Pork Flavor (9, 8) – The garlicky tonkatsu broth is addictive, and the noodles are nostalgic – heavenly when paired with a soft-boiled egg.
8. Hao Hao – Mi Tom Chua Cay (6, 4) – The tangy broth is surprisingly fragrant, but still not enough to rescue the dismal rubber noodles that is hardly worthy of the name “hao hao.”
9. Indo Mie – Chicken Curry Flavor (7, 6) – The floral scent to the slightly curried soup is served with average mie. Not bad but forgettable overall.