I always found it slightly jarring in London that people always asked if I was alright.. 'you alright' I would reply with, why is something wrong, do I not look okay? Took me ages to realise this was just the equivalent of 'how are you' or 'hows it going' or whatever.. Still find it amusing that the British implication on meeting someone is that something is probably wrong, and at best it is 'alright'..