It is important to try something new to help keep one's senses alive. As well as buying some Austrian smoked cheese, I took some time out to visit the swimming baths this week.

Now, swimming baths can be pretty funny places if you haven't been for over a decade. For some of us, school brought the first experience of the baths.

We didn't know what you were meant to wear or whether you had to get changed from home.

"Swim in your underpants" I got told. "What the hell do you need swimming trunks for?"

The Y-fronts did look tempting but then I had to be sure.

The whole swimming thing was never the problem - it was finding a way to get changed with a towel wrapped round you the proved the difficult part.

Since then, though, things have moved on. I have quickly learnt one thing: it takes a lot longer getting changed when you are all grown up.

As a kid you were in and out of your clothes in seconds. Now with all the coins, keys, rings, the mobile phone, the whole process took me well over fifteen minutes.

Once in the pool, some of us will pretend we are having bags of fun, while others will look around and see who's watching them.

In most cases people are too busy swimming -- sadly at other times they are too busy 'going'. You know who you are. Maybe it's the cold water, I don't know.

The toughest thing I was told by a regular swimmer at the baths I visited was 'going' and speaking to someone at the same time.

At this point I didn't know whether to slowly drift away or get my own back? It was pretty tense stuff.

Nowadays they have that dye stuff so it's not really much fun at all. Whilst the swimming baths are a no-go area for some, it's inevitably the same problem when you go on holiday.

I remember when I eventually went on a proper holiday in 1999 I sat on the beach for hours before deciding to go for a swim. I did finally run to the water...but I did it with my tracksuit bottoms on so as not to look totally stupid.

Another time I went in the sea with all my clothes on. People looked but I didn't care.

As for that cheese, I think I've discovered something special.