It is odd.
When I was at University I got to know a lot of people who moved over from London. One actually got really spooked, as in, visibly trembling spooked because a stranger was talking to her on a bus. This stranger ended up being a pensioner who commented that it was nice to see a young lady without an ipod jammed in her ear.
I couldn't understand it. It started a big discussion about "how weird it was that people in Liverpool who they didn't know would just start talking to people about anything" Being the only one from Liverpool there, I was caught in the middle of it.
One lad told about his surprise to be asked by, heaven forbid, a stranger about what score he thought the Merseyside derby would be while he was stood in the queue at the post office. Collectively, five people from London were all telling about how odd they found Liverpool to be. Really odd that "strangers" would talk to them about "pointless stuff". I gave the example of two or three people waiting at a bus stop. They were adamant that no one in London would dare talk to someone else who was waiting for a bus. They were astounded at the suggestion.
I didn't believe it. I just filled them under the sheltered posh London lot.
But the seed was planted and ever since I've put it to the test and found people in London tend to actively avoid any discussion with someone they don't know. Some actually ignore you all together and don't even respond.
