The following are strictly personal views/observations and in no way reflect the views of the Peace Corp nor the federal government of the United States.

Home repair in Moldova is a grueling process and it was a mystery to me why it is such a nuisance until I realized that contractors do not exist here. If you want something done to your house, that you can not do yourself, you must find the person in the village that is capable of performing the necessary task.

Then, once you locate this individual, you must find time when he is free; because, such work is only a tangential profession. Thus, your repairs must come between corn gathering, nut collecting, pig slaughtering, etc.

Another problematic element is the level of alcohol consumption common among men of such trades, meaning you have to catch them when they are sober. Not an easy task.

Here is a story to explicate the issue: My host mother is converting a back room of the house into a new kitchen. To accomplish this she had to find a concrete worker (because houses here are only made of concrete and wall paper). It took three months for the concrete worker to refinish the walls of the new kitchen because he got a hernia, thus repairs halted until he recovered.

Then she had to find an electrician to put lights into the room. This only took a weekend, but it was a nail-biting event considering the electrician fell off the step stool several times due to his constant high blood alcohol content. I was stunned he did not electrocute himself. Although, the light switch in that room has to be operated with force to compel the light to turn on.
Finally, there was the cabinet installer. We are still waiting for him to make his final appearance and install the stove. He has been busy selling cheese.

Witnessing this ulcer inducing process of repairs makes me happy that we have contractors in America.