The temptation, especially for visitors heading to the islands, is to get through Athens as quickly as possible. This is a mistake. To fully experience Athens is to understand the essence of Greece: ancient monuments surviving in a sea of cement, startling beauty amid squalor, tradition and modernity side by side. Athens is home to 4 million people 40% of Greece's population and suffers from all the problems of a big city, and then some: stifling heat and air pollution in summer; noisy traffic jams, and characterless cement apartment blocks. But take the time to explore, and you will discover pockets of incomparable charm. Athens is an intriguing crossroads, blending elements of Middle Eastern and Western cultures. Underneath the confusion and modern clutter lies a palpable Mediterranean warmth that can be most appealing.

Acropolis

If you do nothing else while in Athens, visit the Acropolis, or "High City," a testament to the Golden Age of Greece. Perched atop a rocky outcrop, it dominates the modern city and is Greece's most famous symbol. Foundations were laid here for a temple honoring Athena in 490 BC but were destroyed by the Persians; following the Susa peace treaty, Pericles undertook reconstruction on a monumental scale. Buildings include the architecturally complex Erechtheion temple, most sacred of the Acropolis shrines, and the Parthenon, built between 447 and 438 BC. Dionyssiou Areopagitou, tel. 210/321-0219. Admission: - , joint ticket for Acropolis and Acropolis Museum. Open weekdays 8-6:30 (winter 8-4), weekends 8-3.

Acropolis Museum

Tucked in the southeast corner of the Acropolis site, the museum has nine rooms filled with sculptures found on the Acropolis plus the votive offerings to Athena. It houses some superb works, including the Caryatids and a large collection of colored korai (statues of women dedicated to the goddess Athena). Acropolis, tel. 210/323-6665. Admission: - , joint ticket for Acropolis and Acropolis Museum. Open Mon. 11:30-6:30, Tues.-Fri. 8-6:30, weekends 8:30-3; winter hours vary.

Ancient Agora

This marketplace was the hub of ancient Athens: Here Socrates met with his students while merchants squabbled over the price of olive oil, the Assembly met before moving to the Pnyx, and locals gathered to talk about current events. The Agora first became important under Solon (6th century BC), who founded Athenian democracy; construction continued for almost a millennium. Today, the site's sprawling confusion of stones, slabs, and foundations is dominated by the best-preserved Doric temple in Greece, the Hephaistion, built during the 5th century BC, and the impressive reconstructed Stoa of Attalos II, which houses the Museum of the Agora Excavations. Three entrances: from Monastiraki on Adrianou; from Thission on Apostolou Pavlou; and descending from Acropolis on Ayios Apostoli, tel. 210/321-0185. Admission: - . Open Tues.-Sun. 8:30-3.

Archaeological Museum

Besides an admirable collection of funerary stelae, urns, monuments, and korai, this museum's prize exhibits include the exquisitely made Piraeus Kouros , probably a cult statue of Apollo from the 6th century BC; a 4th-century bronze of a pensive Athena; and two bronze versions of Artemis. Harilaou Trikoupi 31, Piraeus, tel. 210/452-1598. Admission: - . Open Tues.-Sun. 8:30-3.

Byzantine Museum

The only museum in Europe concentrating exclusively on Byzantine art, this collection is housed in the mansion of the Duchess of Plaisance, built from 1840 to 1848 by Kleanthis. Rooms are arranged to look like Greek churches of different eras, and the upper floor contains mostly icons, many quite valuable. Much of the museum is closed for restoration. Vasilissis Sofias 22, tel. 210/721-1027. Admission: - . Open Tues.-Sun. 8:30-3.

Goulandris Cycladic Museum

The museum has an outstanding collection dating from the Bronze Age, with especially notable slender marble figurines, the primitive Cycladic form of the Great Earth Mother. A new wing for special exhibits opened in 1994 in the gorgeous Stathatos Mansion. Neofitou Douka 4 and Irodotou 1, tel. 210/722-8321 through 210/722-8323. Admission: - . Open weekdays 10-4, Sat. 10-3.

Little Mitropolis

This church snuggles up to the pompous Mitropolis , the ornate Cathedral of Athens. Also called Panayia Gorgoepikoos (the "Virgin Who Answers Prayers Quickly"), Little Mitropolis dates to the 12th century; its outer walls are covered with reliefs dating from the Classical to the Byzantine periods. Reliefs of figures and fanciful zodiac signs decorate slabs set above the entrance. Most of the paintings inside have been destroyed, but the famous 13th- to 14th-century Virgin, said to perform miracles, remains. Cathedral Square.

Mikrolimano

The most touristy part of the port of Piraeus, this graceful small harbor is known to old-timers as Turkolimano. Sitting under the awnings by the sea and watching the gaily painted fishing boats is the next best thing to hopping a ferry for the islands. During high season, it's a good idea to have lunch here, as many of the restaurants lining the harbor are packed in the evening. Akti Koumoudourou.

Monastiraki Square

This former Turkish bazaar retains Oriental vestiges from the 400-year period when Greece was subject to the Ottoman Empire. The square takes its name from Panayia Pantanassa Church, commonly called Monastiraki (Little Monastery). It once flourished as an extensive convent, perhaps dating to the 10th century. The square's focal point, the Tzistarakis Mosque (1759) houses the Museum of Traditional Greek Ceramics. Just south of intersection of Ermou and Athinas, tel. 210/324-2066. Museum admission: - Museum open Wed.-Mon. 9:30-2:30.

Mt. Lycabettus

A steeply inclined teleferique (funicular) takes visitors to the summit of Athens' highest hill, crowned by whitewashed Ayios Georgios chapel with a bell tower donated by Queen Olga. On the side of the hill, near the I Prasini Tenta cafι, a small shrine to Ayios Isidoros is built into a cave. From Mt. Lycabettus, you can watch the sunset and then turn in the other direction to see the moon rise over Hymettus. Funicular at Aristippou and Ploutarchou, tel. 210/722-7065. Admission: - round-trip, - one-way. Open Fri.-Wed. 8:45 AM-midnight, Thurs. 10:30 AM-midnight.

National Archaeological Museum

Too huge to cover in one day, this magnificent collection extends from Neolithic to Roman times, with sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, and frescoes, to name but a little. The most celebrated finds are in the central Hall of Mycenaean Antiquities, Room 4, the stunning gold treasures from Schliemann's excavations of Mycenae in 1876. 28 Patission 44, tel. 210/821-7717. Admission: - . Open Mon. 12:30-7 (winter 11-5), Tues.-Fri. 8-7 (winter 8-5), weekends 8:30-3.

Plaka and Anafiotika

Plaka is the main residential and tourist district of Athens, inhabited since prehistoric times. The early 1980s witnessed a renewal of the area, which had been taken over by noisy discos and tacky pensions. The section of Plaka known as Anafiotika is the closest thing to a Cycladic village in the city. In the shadow of the Acropolis and still populated by many descendants of the original Anafi islanders who settled here, Anafiotika is an enchanting area of simple stone houses, nestled right into the bedrock, some changed little over the years, others stunningly restored. On northeast slope of Acropolis rock.

Syntagma (Constitution) Square

This is the center of modern Athens. At the top of the square stands Parliament, formerly the royal palace, completed in 1838 for the new monarchy. Here you can watch the changing of the Evzone guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which happens every day at different times, except on Sunday, when it is scheduled for 11:25 AM. Where Vasilissis Sofias becomes Panepistimiou.

Tower of the Winds

The octagonal Tower of the Winds (Aerides), in the Roman Agora, is the most appealing and well preserved of the Roman monuments of Athens, keeping time since the 1st century BC. It was originally a sundial, water clock, and weather vane topped by a bronze Triton with a metal rod in his hand, which pointed in the direction of the wind. Expressive reliefs around the octagonal tower personify the eight winds, called Oi Aerides (the Windy Ones) by Athenians. Pelopida and Eolou, tel. 210/324-5220. Admission: - . Open Tues.-Sun. 8:30-3.