I think it holds true for major US cities (though usually you're just being panhandled instead of conned). The exception to this is generally people asking for

I think it holds true for major US cities (though usually you're just being panhandled instead of conned). The exception to this is generally people asking for directions This seems much more common if you're on a bike, which if you think about it is pretty clever. I wonder if there is a tourism book out there somewhere that advises you to ask bikers for directions over other people.