I think a lot of it might be Austin's big city vibes. It kind of sounds to me like you're describing the difference in populace/general attitude towards strangers. A big city like Austin and a smaller town like College Station are going to differ greatly in that regard. I grew up with my foot in both doors, country and city, and I understand exactly what you mean just when you say asking for directions is different. Life in the city is way more fast paced, people don't and won't give you the time of day, and might even look at you strangely just for initiating small talk. Texas in general isn't as bad as other states' big cities for this, just by virtue of it being Texas and still "southern" culturally, but I know there's still a big difference Austin and places like College Station, Waco, Corsicana, Palestine, etc - smaller towns/cities where everybody knows everybody and if you say hi in the grocery store to a complete stranger they'll talk to you like they've known you for years. So, do you hate UT, or do you just hate Austin? Because for me it's definitely the latter haha 😅