anime for the anime n00b?

Absolutely nothing to do for the next 3 weeks, so I've decided for the first time ever to delve into the world of anime.
What's really popular out there?
What are your favorites?
How would I go about watching these animes?
P.S. erotic content is fine (appreciated =D) but only as long as it doesnt take precedence over the plot, so dont give me hentai please.

Why not go to the AniDB site - you can list animes that users have rated the highest quite easily, and sort by genre etc.  Being a n00b or not doesn't make much difference after you've watched a couple of shows