```plaintext
   API_ENDPOINT_BASE=http://localhost:8080
   ```

   This will tell your Node.js application to use the WireMock server for API calls. 

3. Examine the Application Entry Point

   - The main file for the application is `index.js`, located in the `accuweather-api/src/api` directory.
   - This file starts the `getWeather.js` module, which is essential for your Node.js application. It uses the `dotenv` package to load environment variables from the`.env` file.
   - Based on the value of `API_ENDPOINT_BASE`, the application routes requests either to the WireMock server (`http://localhost:8080`) or the AccuWeather API. In this setup, it uses the WireMock server.
   - The code ensures that the `ACCUWEATHER_API_KEY` is required only if the application is not using WireMock, enhancing efficiency and avoiding errors.


    ```javascript
    require("dotenv").config();

    const express = require("express");
    const axios = require("axios");

    const router = express.Router();
    const API_ENDPOINT_BASE = process.env.API_ENDPOINT_BASE;
    const API_KEY = process.env.ACCUWEATHER_API_KEY;

    console.log('API_ENDPOINT_BASE:', API_ENDPOINT_BASE);  // Log after it's defined
    console.log('ACCUWEATHER_API_KEY is set:', !!API_KEY); // Log boolean instead of actual key

    if (!API_ENDPOINT_BASE) {
      throw new Error("API_ENDPOINT_BASE is not defined in environment variables");
    }

    // Only check for API key if not using WireMock
    if (API_ENDPOINT_BASE !== 'http://localhost:8080' && !API_KEY) {
      throw new Error("ACCUWEATHER_API_KEY is not defined in environment variables");
    }
    // Function to fetch the location key for the city
    async function fetchLocationKey(townName) {
      const { data: locationData } = await
    axios.get(`${API_ENDPOINT_BASE}/locations/v1/cities/search`, {
        params: { q: townName, details: false, apikey: API_KEY },
      });
      return locationData[0]?.Key;
    }
    ```  

4. Start the Node server

   Before you start the Node server, ensure that you have already installed the node packages listed in the package.json file by running `npm install`. 

   ```console
   npm install 
   npm run start
   ```
 
   You should see the following output:

    ```plaintext
    > express-api-starter@1.2.0 start
    > node src/index.js

    API_ENDPOINT_BASE: http://localhost:8080
    ..
    Listening: http://localhost:5001
    ```

   The output indicates that your Node application has successfully started. 
   Keep this terminal window open. 

5. Test the Mocked API

   Open a new terminal window and run the following command to test the mocked API:

   ```console
   $ curl "http://localhost:5001/api/v1/getWeather?city=Bengaluru"
   ```

   You should see the following output:

   ```plaintext
   {"city":"Bengaluru","temperature":27.1,"conditions":"Mostly cloudy","forecasts":[{"date":"2024-09-02T07:00:00+05:30","temperature":83,"conditions":"Partly sunny w/ t-storms"},{"date":"2024-09-03T07:00:00+05:30","temperature":83,"conditions":"Thunderstorms"},{"date":"2024-09-04T07:00:00+05:30","temperature":83,"conditions":"Intermittent clouds"},{"date":"2024-09-05T07:00:00+05:30","temperature":82,"conditions":"Dreary"},{"date":"2024-09-06T07:00:00+05:30","temperature":82,"conditions":"Dreary"}]}%
   ```

   This indicates that your Node.js application is now successfully routing requests to the WireMock container and receiving the mocked responses

   You might have noticed that you’re trying to use `http://localhost:5001` as the URL instead of port `8080`. This is because your Node.js application is running on port `5001`, and it's routing requests to the WireMock container that's listening on port `8080`.

   > [!TIP]
   > Before you proceed to the next step, ensure that you stop the node application service.

## Use a Live API in production to fetch real-time weather data from AccuWeather

   To enhance your Node.js application with real-time weather data, you can seamlessly integrate the AccuWeather API. This section of the guide will walk you through the steps involved in setting up a non-containerized Node.js application and fetching weather information directly from the AccuWeather API.