New Yorkers, especially city people, have a reputation for being cold and unfriendly. Every man for himself. A dog-eat-dog world. On a recent trip into the city, I was reminded that this is simply not true.
On taking the subway from Penn Station to the Met, we managed to get on the wrong train and wound up in Brooklyn -- a far cry from where we planned to be. Oops. A few people overheard us discussing our plight and offered directions. One kind woman instructed us to follow her. She was going to work on Park Avenue. So, we did. We had to hustle to keep up with her as she hopped off the train, bounded up the escalator two steps at a time, and practically ran through the turnstiles to catch the uptown subway. And she was by no means young.
Later, we went to Greenwich Village to have dinner and once again, somebody overheard us discussing which subway we had to take and stopped to offer us directions. He said he'd walk us over there if we'd like. Both times we were astounded by how friendly and willing to go out of their way for others New Yorkers truly are.
Get New Yorkers into their cars, though, and it's a different story. On the roads and bridges, they don't give you an inch and it's back to being the dog-eat-dog people they're reputed to be.
