Kuala Lumpur Energy Drink Trip 2018 (July)

Night Departure, Early Morning Arrival – Easy Sightseeing in Kuala Lumpur

Since there’s almost no time difference in Asia, flights like the night departure and early morning arrival I usually take allow me to comfortably go to the airport after work, even on weekdays. I can relax in the lounge until boarding time, around 11 PM, drinking a bit of alcohol or taking a shower, and then sleep or watch movies on the plane until I arrive. For Kuala Lumpur, it takes about 7 hours. If you're someone who can sleep on a plane, it's just the right amount of flight time.

This time, I arrived 45 minutes earlier than planned, so I was lucky ( ´∀｀)b Good job!
This is the monorail heading to the terminal with immigration. It's still only 5:30 AM, but let's head out to check the current energy drink situation in Malaysia!

From Kuala Lumpur's airport to the city center, you can take a limousine bus for an hour (280 yen) or the KL Express for 30 minutes (1500 yen). I've used both, but this time I decided to take the ridiculously cheap limousine bus, assuming it was still too early, but it unexpectedly took over an hour and a half. So, even in the early morning, I recommend taking the KL Express.

To the Area I Couldn't Visit Last Time

First, when I visited Kuala Lumpur earlier this year, I couldn’t go to a certain area because I didn't bring any cash. This time, however, I brought cash and a card that allows me to withdraw money, so I decided to check it out.

Normally, I wouldn't forget my wallet when traveling abroad, but for some reason, Drin has made this mistake repeatedly. In the past, I’ve forgotten it in Los Angeles, London, and Kuala Lumpur. It’s bad (；´∀｀)

I’ve now landed in an area that just smells like local vibes.

This is the miraculous 7-Eleven where leftover Red Bull limited cans were found in 2017. I’m back after a year and a half! ((o(´∀｀)o))

In the fridge, there were many Neymar 2018 cans that were released around May. However, the limited edition of the 473ml Malaysia GP design, which I was somewhat hoping to find, was unfortunately sold out. I had hoped I could still get one, but after a year since its release, it was gone.

I didn't know this before coming to Kuala Lumpur, but Asia Red Bull also had limited designs for both the original and sugar-free cans. The can size for Asia Red Bull is a bit awkward, so I didn’t plan to collect them, but I couldn’t resist and ended up buying one of each. I forgot to take a picture though Σ(´∀｀；)
You can barely see it in the picture above, on the left side of the golden Red Bull can…

Asia Red Bull, both in cans and bottles, is priced at around 100 yen per can, so it's much more affordable than European Red Bull. Honestly, I don’t think the price of European Red Bull or Monster would appeal to locals, and I get the impression that’s why limited edition cans don’t sell out quickly and are left on the shelves.

I think Neymar 2018 will still be available for another couple of months, so if you have the chance, definitely visit Kuala Lumpur. Neymar is not exclusive to 7-Eleven, so you should be able to find it in various stores. It seems like when they order 250ml, limited edition designs often come in too.

Ah! This is the Real Fun of the Hunt!!!

After sightseeing, I got off at a station to do some shopping unrelated to energy drinks. By chance, there was a local convenience store chain, KK Mart, right nearby. Honestly, I wasn’t planning to buy any energy drinks, but for the sake of my energy drink journey, I decided to at least take a photo.

And to my surprise, they still had the Red Bull Malaysia GP limited edition cans from over a year ago! This is a miracle ((o(´∀｀)o))

The reason I was excited to find the 473ml limited edition cans is that, in Kuala Lumpur, the price difference between 250ml and 473ml is surprisingly small. While it's still expensive, the 473ml is relatively more economical.

By the way, there are no regular 473ml designs, and they only come out when limited edition designs are released (as of 2018). So when the 473ml limited design cans are released, it's not about the design being special, but because they’re cheaper and that's why they sell out. Maybe the 250ml cans are just too expensive!?

That’s why limited edition 473ml cans usually sell out within a few months. This time, it was a miracle that some were left, possibly because they were forgotten in the back of the fridge. This kind of thing happens! (*´艸｀*)

No Movement from Monster or Other Energy Drinks

I had hoped to find limited edition Monster cans, but as expected, there was no change and only the original 355ml was available. Convenience stores always have them, but their display feels lackluster.

Other Asian energy drinks I saw hadn’t changed much either. This time, I bought Red Bull 250ml and 473ml limited edition cans, Red Bull original 355ml, and two types of Asia Red Bull limited edition cans, and then I was done. I was able to travel light and without increasing my luggage size on the way home.

Considering I decided to go on this trip just a few days ago, it went smoothly, and I was able to buy some new products and unexpected deadstock, so it was a fun hunt within a short time. Also, I didn’t realize this while I was in Kuala Lumpur, but when I arrived at Haneda after 10 PM, I was surprised to find that it was more comfortable in Kuala Lumpur during the day. This year’s summer in Japan is abnormal…(ヽ´ω`)