Cameras, as I've found, are okay...
...as long as they are point-and-shoots. Add a long lens and people begin to get suspicious. Add a tripod and its all over.
You might as well be aiming a gun at a person in some cases with the way they often react. I understand, so it is a rare thing for me to be taking pictures of random people in public. That's what the tiny pocket "crapCam" (AipTek Pencam) is for -- not easily seen and cheap enough that if it gets smashed to bits I could care less.
Were you able to pull off getting a shot of this girl, xoxoxoBruce? I wouldn't mind seeing it.