Trieste doesn't feel like Italy. It feels like Vienna on the Adriatic — Habsburg architecture, literary cafes where Joyce wrote Ulysses, a castle on a cliff, the best coffee culture in Italy.
Venezia Santa Lucia → Trieste Centrale. Frecciarossa 2h, regionals 2h15 for €9.20.
Train, 2 hours. The day trip that changes how you think about Italy. Worth an overnight.