Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Ponder that as you browse the colorful decorative hens at the one-of-a-kind Happy Hens gift shop. The hens were inspired by early New Zealand pioneer women, who tended kitchen gardens and kept chickens in many hues, choosing them for their aesthetic appeal as well as their eggs. In addition to the hand-painted ceramic varieties, you’ll find hens on everything from postcards to aprons to (naturally) eggcups. The shop is right on the waterfront in Portobello, about half an hour from Dunedin on the Otago Peninsula.
