friendlies city?

My son won a competition - first prize was two first class tickets London/New York and £500 cash for a weekend. We asked for it to be swapped for four tourist class tickets and the money and we all went. Wow! What a great weekend! Exhausting, but great. We found everybody really helpful and friendly - taxi drivers, hotel staff, on the subway, on the ferry, museum staff, lift attendents at the Empire State and the World Trade Centre buildings, everyone. It was the first warm day of spring and Central Park was buzzing with joggers, skaters and walkers. Great fun. Mind you, we are of the sort of people who start a conversation first and so find that people open up to you the world over.