A couple of instances where approaches failed are as follows...

I had just come back from indoor climbing on a Sunday and had bought myself some hot chips with vinegar as I was starving and tired. I was dressed in tracksuit pants and a t-shirt and was probably still sweaty from the climbing work out. So you can imagine not the most attractive look. But when I got to the tube platform there was a girl waiting to take the train and she was seriously a 9+. I sat down a 2 seats away from her on the platform. As I sat down she put on some head phones, so I thought what the hell and asked in a calm/soft voice "What music are you listening to?", the look she gave me was ice cold frosty and she mumbled something to me that I could not hear. But I ignored it and persisted, "Are you listening to classical music?", again she looked annoyed at my persistence ( and probably silly question ) and mumbled something else. At this point I backed off. But if I were to put myself in her shoes, I probably looked like a vagrant and she was dressed very nicely. I also came across as subdued and probably creepy instead of alive, fun and carefree. She probably formulated an image of stalker/nutter in her mind.

It is said that women are more scared of men who speak softly, than those who speak assertively and a little loud ( not to be confused with arogantly loud ). Even though it was an unsuccessfull interaction looking back and analysing how the interaction went, gives me usefull clues of things to work on and improve.

Another example of a failed interaction was on that Friday night in the cocktail bar. Just after the South African girls had gone upstairs, 2 other girls came down and were sitting behind P and I. They started talking to some guys and each other and I noticed they were speaking French. I tapped one on the shoulder and said "Vous ete francaise?", to which she replied "Yes!". Now this immediately told me she was uncomfortable speaking French to me and the way she responded was the equivalent of "back off". Maybe they were trying to impress the guys they were with, or the guys they were with were their BFs. This is a second time a French girl has spoken to me coldly when I have spoken to them in French. So my future tactic will be to speak to them in English and not to let them know I speak French until I have built up better rapport with them. Again another learning opportunity, rather than thinking all french women hate me .

Better to crash and burn and learn something, than never to have crash and burnt and therefore learnt nothing.

Ok this really is my last expereince post on this subject.