It’s surprisingly easy to stop by your Senator or Representative’s office, say “Hi”, and drop off a letter. You just need to utter the magic words: I’m a constituent.

All Senate and House buildings are open to the public. Every day, special interest groups flock to the Congressional Office Buildings to drop off “information packets” for legislative aides. There’s no reason you can’t be one of them.

Just draft a letter to your Senator or Representative (or, get your family, friends, and neighbors involved too and offer to take their letters with you) and drop it off with their staff. You never know what will happen.

It’s also a SUPER interesting opportunity to see Congress from the inside.

Here’s how you do it:

1. Use the WhoIsMyRepresentative site to figure out who your Representative and Senators are. Click on their names and the site will tell you their office address.

2. Like going to a Congressional hearing, you’ll need to figure out which of the six Senate and House Office Buildings you’re going to.

Here’s is a map of Capitol Hill. North of the Capitol Building, you have the three Senate Office Buildings: Dirksen, Russel, and Hart. Hart stands out because it’s the super fancy new(er) office building, all soaring glass windows and white marble/concrete. To get to the Senate buildings, take the Metro red line to Union Station. South of the Capitol Building, you have the three House buildings: Dicksen, Longworth, and Rayburn. To get to the House buildings, take the Metro orange and blue lines to Capitol South.

3. You’ll have to enter each building through their Visitor Entrance, go through Security and a metal detector. Once inside, you’ll relive your first day of High School, and feel like a doofus as you figure out which room your Senator is in, all while staffers buzz around you with stacks of papers and furrowed brows. If you see someone smiling diplomatically at you as you wait for the elevator, it’s likely a Representative or Senator. (They kind of expect you to know who they are – they are celebrities in these parts.) Look for the trusty, ever-present Senate or House lapel pin, and smile back.

4. Once you’re on the right floor, you’ll be able to tell the Senator’s and Representative’s doors apart from custodial closets, bathrooms, or meeting rooms by the flag poles placed out front – one US flag and one state flag. You get bonus points if you know what your state flag looks like.

5. Walk in and explain that you’re a constituent who is on vacation in DC. Then, say you have a letter to drop off for the Representative or Senator. If your letter involves a certain topic that you feel passionately about, feel free to tell the staffer what your letter is about and how important it is to you.

Remember, while you’re in there, totally feel free to judge the décor, the friendliness of the staff, and how organized the place seems to be. And then gossip about it for months later with all your  neighbors.

After your adventure is over, definitely walk into the Capitol Hill neighborhood for some fantastic lunch options: DC Dining Guide, Cheap Lunch Edition.