Got Rio de Janeiro on your mind? The San Diego Reader offers up a short, but nice travel feature on Brazil.

As Carnival approaches, Rio might be on many minds and look for our own Carnival feature soon. The Reader offers some notes on some of the city’s more favored tourist spots and some hints on a few less-traveled places.

Looking for a nighttime experience? Don’t miss the neighborhood of Lapa. If the samba music spilling out of its bars were jazz, you’d be in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Too touristy, you say? OK, head on over to Trapiche Gamboa, trapichegamboa.com.br, for a refuge of the self-proclaimed “most authentic” Brazilian music. The restaurant/bar has ceilings climbing 40 feet high, but the atmosphere’s intimate with dancing and laughing the night away.

Sounds like a great night. Sometimes it’s just hard to shake Rio off your mind – so you might as well embrace it. What are your favorite memories of Rio?