Learning Nyanja and the like

My little green Study-Buddy

Being a lingophile, I am excited about learning bits and pieces of Nyanja, Bemba, Tonga, Lozi and other Zambian languages. Right now I am mainly focusing on Nyanja since that is what our workplace mainly operates in. As a fellow Bantu language, it's strikingly similar to Swahili, which makes it easier for me to pick up words here and there. Also, lots of people who have settled in Lusaka come from Tanzania or DRC, so sometimes I can use Swahili in times of desperation, if English fails.
I was quite surprised that not even in Lusaka everyone speaks English. The main avenue for learning the language is at school; if someone has dropped out or been out of school for too long without an official English-requiring job, the local languages are all that he or she needs. This is especially true for parts like Kabanana where most people don't travel far out into town where English is used more often in shops and businesses. I therefore have a great motivation to learn Nyanja and the like if I want to interact with Kabananans in their 'heart language' at least at a basic level.
I will keep checking back on my language progress ;)