I default to being introverted too, and having follow on questions like that typically annoy me. (Probably one of the more annoying one is, "Are you OK?" asked by well-meaning friends).
Having said that, I have happily chatted with random strangers before, both receiving questions and initiating them. The difference is usually in how much the person who is asking the question is genuinely listening. Asking questions for the sake of making noise irritates me. Asking questions because you are really are curious works a lot better. When you are curious, you don't come from the position of "I know everything" or, "You should talk to me because I am awesome" or "You shouldn't talk to me because I am a loser."
As for awkward silences themselves, I think it is better to practice being comfortable with them so that the silence feels natural instead of being awkward. You're rarely going to be somewhere completely silent and most people generally have a running commentary running in the back of their heads. Awkward silences feel awkward due to self-doubt and anxiety. When you shed the anxiety, interacting with people feels more natural; distracting or forcing yourself with smalltalk doesn't really get rid of the anxiety. Being genuinely curious ... like exploratory programming ... tends to shed off the anxiety.
Having said that, I have happily chatted with random strangers before, both receiving questions and initiating them. The difference is usually in how much the person who is asking the question is genuinely listening. Asking questions for the sake of making noise irritates me. Asking questions because you are really are curious works a lot better. When you are curious, you don't come from the position of "I know everything" or, "You should talk to me because I am awesome" or "You shouldn't talk to me because I am a loser."
As for awkward silences themselves, I think it is better to practice being comfortable with them so that the silence feels natural instead of being awkward. You're rarely going to be somewhere completely silent and most people generally have a running commentary running in the back of their heads. Awkward silences feel awkward due to self-doubt and anxiety. When you shed the anxiety, interacting with people feels more natural; distracting or forcing yourself with smalltalk doesn't really get rid of the anxiety. Being genuinely curious ... like exploratory programming ... tends to shed off the anxiety.