I wouldn't call it feigned politeness on their end
[QUOTE=LuckyNuts;2720138]You can be direct with very good results by telling them what you are looking for rather than asking them to volunteer that infomation.
Better yet is a couple superficial remarks beforehand with feigned polilteness as suggested by JBee
But I wouldn't expect more than crickets from most chicas by asking "que buscas".[/QUOTE]And maybe you weren't either but the culture here is very much into politeness and respect, especially and including the prepago chicas.
My grandmother used to say, "You catch more flies with honey than vinegar" and then I used to think, "Why are we trying to catch flies exactly?"
Ostee Out.